Subterfuge
by wizardofahz
Summary: It had become JJ vs. the team. She knew. They didn't. And she hoped they never would.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own _Criminal Minds_ as can be evidenced by my writing of _**fan**_fiction instead of canon episodes.

A/N: After finishing "Skeletons," I felt like a break from writing would be nice and therefore began another story. Wait… That doesn't make sense… Oh well.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the beginning of "Subterfuge".

…

"Anyone know when JJ'll be back?"

The team minus Hotch and JJ had gathered in the round table room and were awaiting a briefing.

"Nope," Prentiss said, answering Garcia's question. "But she did say her business trip was supposed to be no more than a week."

"Actually, JJ's exact words were –"

"She'll be back when she's back," Hotch interrupted Reid as he entered the room. "We have other things to focus on."

He placed a stack of files at the center of the table, and immediately each person grabbed one.

"Jordan Todd called. We have a potential terrorist situation on our hands. Our Counterterrorism Division intercepted a message that they'd like us to look over. We don't know the timeline on this, so we're treating it as urgent. Prentiss and Reid, start with the message's translation and word analysis. Dave and Morgan, I'd like you to meet up with Todd to discuss details regarding how they intercepted the message, backgrounds on any potential suspects they might have, etc. Garcia, start checking the information we already have. I'd like to see where that leads us. I'll be coordinating our efforts with those of Counterterrorism.

"Let's get to work."

…

"Ugghh," Morgan groaned, rising from his chair to stretch and walk around. "We've been at this for hours, and what do we have? Nothing."

"We don't have nothing," Reid said, not bothering to look up from the transcript he was re-reading.

"Reid's right," Emily agreed. "We just don't have that much."

Morgan rolled his eyes. "All right, let's start at the beginning. Again."

Reid was about to speak when Hotch and Rossi entered the round table room.

"I just briefed Counterterrorism. They've decided to give us complete jurisdiction of this case to make things a bit easier," Hotch said.

"So what do we have?" Rossi asked.

The younger three exchanged glances.

"Umm…" Prentiss said hesitantly. "Not much still."

Morgan, Prentiss, and Reid updated Hotch and Rossi with what little they had come up with. Together, the five worked together to put more of the puzzle together.

Finally, they made a breakthrough.

Morgan dialed Garcia on speakerphone. "Hey Baby Girl, I need you to run an address for me: 5511 Dana St. of Lorton, Virginia."

Garcia began typing away and came up with, "The warehouse of the Weston Art Gallery."

"An art gallery?" Morgan queried dubiously. "Do we think terrorists are suddenly more offended by paint on canvas than citizens living out our evil, American ways?"

"It's not uncommon for art auctions to be used to launder large amounts of money or transfer intelligence," Prentiss said. "It's possible that the warehouse is not a target, but rather some sort of meeting place or pick-up location."

"Garcia, what do we know about the Weston Art Gallery?" Hotch asked.

"Well," Garcia's voice came through the speakerphone. "It's not squeaky clean, but that has nothing to do with its financials. They had a personnel problem but not of the terrorist variety. Think more along the lines of hanky panky."

"Keep digging around, Garcia, and let us know what you find," Hotch instructed.

"Will do, my fluffy, cotton-tailed bunnies. Garcia out."

The profilers exchanged amused glances.

"Any ideas on when this – whatever this is – is supposed to go down?" Rossi asked.

Reid began to scribble furiously on the whiteboard. The team watched silently and let him do his thing. He paused, erased, wrote, paused again. As he finished, he gestured at it. "8 PM today according to this."

Hotch looked at his watch and was startled to see that it was already 7:23 PM. Time had certainly flown by. "That's in 37 minutes. Let's get moving. I'll call SWAT."

They sped to the warehouse, turning off their sirens when they were several blocks away.

As they arrived at the warehouse, Hotch promptly exited the SUV and directed, "Dave, Morgan, and Reid, take a team and circle around back. The rest of us will cover the front entrance. On my signal, we'll enter simultaneously."

Morgan nodded and led the other to the back entrance. Once there, he said, "In position."

Hotch began the countdown. "3… 2… 1… Go!"

They entered quickly and methodically swept through the warehouse.

"What the…?" Morgan said as they encountered a singular dead body.

He heard Reid's voice to his left. "There are more bodies over here. I think they're the terrorists."

Rossi got hold of Hotch over the comms. "Hotch, we've got what look to be dead terrorists back here."

"Any sign as to who killed them?"

Rossi looked to Reid, Morgan, and the SWAT officers accompanying them, who all shook their heads, before replying, "Negative."

"All right. Keep an eye out. We'll do the same."

Unbeknownst to the BAU and SWAT teams, someone a few aisles down stilled and signed, "That's the BAU."

"What are they doing here?" a second person asked, also signed.

The first person responded, "I don't know, but we need to get out of here."

"What do you have in mind?"

"Let's rejoin the others first."

They quietly snuck around the aisles to do just that.

As they approached the others, the second person was about to warn them when one of the others held up a hand to silence them. He listened carefully then didn't even bother to whisper. "We've got company."

"Yes, you do," Rossi said, as the unsubs were surrounded.

There was a total of five of them, each with a mask and a raised gun. They said nothing but merely held their position and waited.

Hotch took control of the situation. "Lower your weapons."

"And then what? We come quietly?" the unsub who previously spoke asked sarcastically.

"If you want to get out of here alive," Hotch said, readying himself to shoot. If these unsubs were anything like the terrorists they killed, they would rather go down shooting than surrender.

"Well I don't intend on dying or getting arrested, so what do you propose?"

"It doesn't matter. We're wasting time," a female voice with a British accent rang out. "We need to go."

"Ella tiene razón. Tenemos que salir," a deep voice said.

"Agreed," another male voice said, this one with a Russian accent.

The remaining man said nothing but nodded.

"Well, Agent Hotchner. It seems my team is in agreement, so we're going to head out. Sorry about that."

Hotch tried to reason with them. "You're outnumbered, and we have you covered from both sides."

The unsubs didn't seem too concerned. "So it would seem."

The unsubs began to move away from each other.

"Don't move!" Morgan, Prentiss, and a few of the SWAT officers yelled.

The next thing they knew, they were all waking up on the warehouse floor, and the masked group of five was nowhere to be seen.

…

As the unsubs reached their vehicle – a very domestic-looking blue van, they made sure they weren't followed and began stripping themselves of their gear.

"How'd this happen?" their leader asked, ripping his mask off. He was a hardened-looking white man in his late 50s.

"It shouldn't have. I checked all the intel." The petite woman took off her mask as well, revealing gorgeous blonde hair and dazzling blue eyes. She spoke in a perfect American accent. "We should've been all clear tonight."

They stowed their gear away into a hidden floor compartment. If anyone came across the group and their van, they would appear to be a group of colleagues or friends who just enjoyed a late night out.

"We missed something," the driver – a very well built Asian man – said and started the van's engine.

As they began to drive away, the youngest, who enjoyed adrenaline rushes a little too much, said, "Yes well, you can't deny it made things more exciting."

Their leader glared at him and growled, "It's not supposed to be exciting."

"That was clever, the accent," their final member said to the blonde. He was a tall, middle-aged black man with a sweet smile.

"I'm just glad you picked up on it so quickly," she replied gratefully.

He grinned at her. "I'm just glad I remembered my high school Spanish."

The youngest leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms behind his head. He resumed his Russian accent. "And now, they'll be running down a false lead."

"Niiiiice," drawled the driver as he casually tapped the steering wheel.

The rest of the drive was filled with light banter.

"All right, guys," the petite blonde said as they reached their destination. "I gotta go brief the powers that be. They're going to be wondering how we got into this mess."

"Will we see you afterwards?" their leader asked.

The woman shook her head. "No, I think it's time I head back to the BAU."

And with that, Jennifer Jareau waved the group good-bye.

…

Translation:

Ella tiene razón. Tenemos que salir. = She's right. We have to leave.

A/N: You can assume that most locations I mention in this story will have been made up.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: I tried to convey the emotional roller coaster JJ's on as best I could: guilty that she has to lie but glad that she and her team can get away with it. Rather than give her a character makeover and turn her into a sort of super-spy, I wanted her to be the JJ we know who's dealing with an added burden. Hope I did all right…

…

"Hey," Emily greeted brightly as JJ trudged sleepily into the round table room around noon. "You're back!"

"How was your assignment?" Morgan asked.

Before JJ could respond, Reid said, "You look tired."

"Thanks, Spence. You really know how to make a girl feel good." She sank into a chair and groaned, "I hate jet lag." She then glanced around at her teammates. "Ok, I know why I'm tired. Why do you guys look like hell?"

The team sans Garcia exchanged glances and then told her their account of the previous night.

"So what do you guys think?" JJ asked. "I mean, that doesn't sound like much to work with."

"There's not a lot," Hotch admitted.

"I'm wondering why they didn't kill us," Morgan said thoughtfully and began to rub the back of his head. "They killed the terrorists but not us?"

"All right," Rossi said looking around the group. "Let's start with that. What makes us different from terrorists?"

"We're the good guys?" Emily suggested sarcastically.

Morgan rolled his eyes at her. "Like, what, they have some sort of moral code?" he replied equally as sarcastically.

Hotch knew he had to stop his "older kids" from continuing down this vein before Emily could fire back with a sarcastic retort of her own. If they didn't stop now, they had the potential to go on forever. "Focus."

"Maybe it had something to do with their objective," Reid thought out loud. "The terrorists were probably there for the same reason as the unsubs, so they had to be eliminated. We presumably arrived after they had done whatever they needed to."

"What makes you say that?" Prentiss asked.

"The British unsub" – at this JJ tried her best not to react – "said, 'It doesn't matter. We're wasting time. We need to go.' She didn't say anything along the lines of needing to finish their objective."

Hotch nodded his head at Reid's reasoning. "Ok, so that gives us a little bit about their behavior. They presumably don't kill unless they have to. How about their identities, who they are?"

"Based on the way they moved, I would guess they had military training," Rossi said.

"Good," Hotch said. "What else?"

"We have an American man, a British woman, a Hispanic man, a Russian man, and an unknown male." Prentiss ticked them off one by one on her fingers.

"Hispanic," Hotch noted. "Could he have been Spanish?"

Prentiss shook her head. "Definitely not a Spaniard. My guess is Central American. I can try talking to a contact or two about narrowing it down further."

JJ spoke next. "Well, in terms of motive… A Russian teaming up with an American and a Brit? My guess is – with a combination like that – they're probably in it for the money."

"I had the same thought," Morgan agreed. "But that leads us to another question: who's their employer?"

"They could be a freelance group," Reid theorized. "They seemed to have a hierarchy or a clearly defined leader at least."

"The American may have been in charge yesterday, but I doubt a group like that has an internal leader who picks which jobs they do. There's nothing to ensure loyalty that way," Morgan rebutted.

Something dawned on Hotch. "And somehow they knew who I am, addressed me by name."

"Oh yeah…" Emily said. "I'd forgotten about that."

JJ's expression flickered. _Oops_, she thought to herself. _That __wasn__'__t __supposed __to __happen._

"What?" Hotch prompted.

"It's just…" JJ thought quickly. "It may not be that weird. The BAU's been called in to help with cases involving terrorism before. If that team did any scouting beforehand to see whom they'd possibly be dealing with, the BAU would be on that list. At least, that's what I would've done."

Rossi tilted his head at her. "You would've… You planned anything like this before?"

"I can't speak in hypotheticals?" JJ responded, hoping Rossi would drop it.

But he didn't. "What exactly did you do with the Pentagon?"

"Classified," JJ said shortly. "Can we get back to this case?"

Hotch re-took control. "Let's split up. Prentiss, work on the subtleties of the unsubs' accents. I know they didn't say much, but I'd like you to try to narrow down their possible points of origin. Reid, work with her. You'll remember the smaller details better than the rest of us. Any little bit helps. Morgan, go check in with Garcia to see if she's come up with anything. Dave, JJ, and I will talk to our contacts, see if anyone out there's heard of or seen this group before."

…

JJ paced as she spoke into her phone.

"As soon as their reports come in, I need you to forward them to me."

On the other end of the line, she was on speakerphone, the conversation being followed by a couple people.

"Yes, ma'am." A woman sitting at a computer quickly began to set-up JJ's request.

"I mean it, K. _All_ of them: BAU and SWAT both."

The hardened-looking man from the previous night frowned at the tone of JJ's voice. "You seem nervous. Did you slip up?"

"No, but I can't pretend it's not a little nerve-wracking. I'm working with the world's foremost experts on behavior who've known me for years. It'll be a wonder if I can pull this off."

"They won't see what they're not looking for." He tried to reassure her.

"You don't understand, C." JJ's pacing was beginning to pick up speed. "When Agent Hotchner and I were pretending Agent Prentiss was dead, Agent Rossi figured it out. Or at least, he wasn't entirely fooled."

"You'll be fine, Jareau," C said confidently.

The woman at the computer finished typing. "The files will be sent your way as soon as they're submitted, ma'am."

"Thank you, K." JJ sighed and stopped her pacing. She slumped against the wall and tried to relax.

"Is there anything we should be worried about?" C asked.

"Fortunately for us, they're currently following the international team lead. They have no reason not to. And in the future, if we could minimize showing our familiarity with this country, this area, the BAU, whatever… that would be great. Agent Hotchner was wondering how you knew his name."

"Damn."

"It's all right. I've managed some damage control. They shouldn't think too much of it anymore."

"Let us know if anything changes."

"Will do. Jareau out."

JJ resumed her pacing, thoughts about her current predicament zooming around her mind.

What on Earth had she created? It was supposed to be something for the greater good. Instead it had turned into a path of no return. Every time she tried to get out, she got sucked back in.

"Jayje?"

Startled, JJ jumped slightly and turned to see Emily approaching.

"We were wondering where you disappeared to." Upon seeing JJ's tense posture, she asked, "You ok?"

When her "Hmm?" came out strangled, JJ cleared her throat and gave it another try. "Yeah, I just… I had a follow-up phone call to make. You know, for the trip I just got back from."

The closer to the truth, the better the lie, right?

Emily's brow furrowed in concern. "You sure you're all right?"

JJ momentarily let her physical and mental exhaustion overwhelm her, feeling both grateful and guilty for Emily's friendship. "Let's just say thing's didn't go as planned."

"I know the feeling," Emily said sympathetically. "Come on, let's join the others."

…

The team reconvened to go over their new findings.

"We've got IDs," Garcia said and began to pull the information up on the screen.

"Really?" JJ tried to mask her concern.

"How?" Hotch asked. "We didn't get any pictures or recordings of them."

"She meant of the terrorists," Morgan clarified.

"Oh, right," JJ sighed.

For her, it was a sign of relief. Luckily for her, everyone else took it as a sign of what they felt: disappointment.

With all their focus on the unsubs, the profilers had almost forgotten about the terrorists.

Garcia briefed them on whatever she had about the terrorists and their naughty activities. Unfortunately though, she couldn't tell them why the terrorists were in that warehouse. When she finished, Rossi asked, "Garcia, did you find anything about the unsubs? Maybe something in connection with the terrorists?"

"Nada," Garcia replied. "I ran the parameters you gave me about the unsubs, but I didn't find anything solid. There were a couple of other international groups, but like I said, nothing solid."

"Send them our way anyway, Garcia," Hotch told her. "This group had to start somewhere. Prentiss, Reid, what'd you come with?"

Prentiss spoke for the both of them. "All Reid and I could ascertain was that the British female's accent was a sort of Americanized Mancunian, so she's probably been in the States for a while. One English word in a Russian accent wasn't enough to get us well… anywhere. And as for the Spanish, it was so generic it could've been said by an American high school student."

JJ had to hide a smirk at that assessment. High school Spanish indeed.

"I got zilch from my old military contacts," Rossi said.

"Same," Hotch said. "Counterterrorism has never encountered them before, and neither has anyone in the bureau. JJ?"

"Same as Garcia. Hints here and there but nothing solid. They promised to keep an ear to the ground in case anything more substantial pops up."

Frustrated by the lack of progress, Morgan growled, "Why does it feel like this group came out of nowhere?"

"They've definitely had experience," JJ said. "They're highly confident. The American was toying with Hotch. He knew they would get away, but he said things like 'what do you propose?'"

Morgan looked at her strangely. "Wait, how'd you know that? I didn't even remember that."

JJ mentally slapped herself. She wanted to be informed, but she wanted more not to arouse suspicion of herself. "It was in the SWAT leader's report. He seemed particularly offended by it. I don't know why."

Hotch frowned. "I didn't realize McFeely had already submitted his report."

"I kinda cheated," JJ admitted. "As soon as any of the reports come in, I have a copy sent my way. Since I wasn't there last night, I guess I feel a little behind. I just want to make sure I get all the details, so I can be on the same page as you guys.

"Anyway, now that we have IDs on the terrorists, I know someone that should be able to help on that front at the very least."

"Sounds good."

…

"Hey there, little lady," a voice said at the doorway of the round table room.

"Parker!"

They hugged briefly. As they separated, JJ introduced him to the others.

"This is Parker Jackson with the CIA. He's the one that got me the info on Emily during the Doyle…" JJ searched for the right word. "Situation."

He was a good-looking young man with a charming smile. Though he hadn't done anything more than say hello to JJ, the rest of the profilers could already tell he was full of charisma.

"It's nice to meet you all. I've heard plenty of great things from this one." Jackson punched JJ lightly on the shoulder.

JJ grinned. "Yeah, well they heard terrible things about you."

"Really now?"

"Oh yeah, man," Morgan said with mock sincerity. "Terrible things."

It was Reid's turn to say, "Really?" He quickly wracked his brain, searching for any mention of a Parker Jackson. He frowned when his search came up empty.

Emily jumped in. "You were so terrible you weren't even worth a mention."

"Oh sarcasm…" Reid whispered to himself as it dawned on him.

Hotch raised a single eyebrow at Morgan and Prentiss. They had been acting strangely all day. "What is with you two today?"

"Got knocked out, not enough sleep, and too much coffee," Prentiss said immediately.

Hotch frowned. "Reid and Rossi are fine."

"That's practically normal for Reid. Kid couldn't sleep less and drink more coffee if he tried," Morgan reasoned.

"And Rossi's Rossi. Just like you're you," Emily added.

Off to the side, JJ whispered to Jackson, "I'd say they're not normally like this, but that'd be a lie."

"If they're anything like you, I have no doubt," Jackson responded cheekily.

He grinned as JJ swatted his shoulder.

"Just start briefing us." She shoved him forward.

"All righty then. As you know the terrorists you found were members of a terrorist organization based out of Somalia. They were in Virginia to track down a painting. By all appearances, it looks like a normal painting; however, if you were to remove the canvas from its frame, you would find schematics on the back. What the schematics are for, I can't tell you. Not because of clearance levels or trust, but because I don't know."

"And now those schematics are in the hands of our unsubs," Prentiss said worriedly.

"I wouldn't be too worried," Jackson said. "The schematics are only part of a larger puzzle. A couple days ago, a group of CIA agents were able to recover a different component."

"Then why go after the painting if they can't do anything with it?" Reid asked.

"There are still plenty of people who would pay good money for those schematics. Being a terrorist is not a cheap hobby. They need to get their dough somehow," Jackson answered.

"And did JJ tell you about our unsubs?" Hotch asked with a glance at JJ who nodded.

"She did. We don't have anything at the moment, but don't vorry. Ve vill be vatching out for zem," Jackson said, ending in his best German accent, which turned out to be terrible.

The BAU smirked, smiled, and shook their heads at him.

As JJ hugged him good-bye, she whispered in his ear, "Thank God your Russian accent is leagues ahead of your German one."

"да." With a wink to JJ, Jackson walked out the round table room door.

…

Thanks for reading! =]


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: Sorry for the super long update wait. I have no excuse, but this is a longer chapter, so I hope that makes up for something.

There was a minor edit to chapter 2. The person I designated as B is now C. I must've had a brain fart while writing that scene. It's a small change, but it does matter in the long haul.

There are loads of character interactions in this chapter, and they are my favorite kind to write. I don't know why I mentioned this. Oh well…

Also, my "knowledge" of the spy business comes from shows like _Alias__, Nikita,_ and _Covert Affairs_, so it's bound to be a tad unrealistic and overly fantastical.

Anyways, now that I've bored you all with my useless A/Ns, what's next will hopefully seem more interesting. Onward with the new chapter!

…

"My team," Hotch called out from the walkway. "Briefing room. Now, please."

"Did we get new evidence?" Morgan asked hopefully as he joined the rest of the team in the round table room.

Hotch shook his head. "We have a new case."

"What?"

"With the lack of new leads, we have to put the Weston one aside."

Hotch nodded for Garcia to start the briefing. She looked back-and-forth between Hotch and Morgan before hesitantly beginning.

After the briefing, the team rose to head out when Hotch called Morgan back.

"Morgan," Hotch waited for Morgan to face him before continuing. "As always, what you do in your spare time is up to you."

An unspoken understanding passed between the two men. Morgan nodded at him and walked out the room.

…

Upon the team's arrival back to the federal building in Quantico, Morgan immediately separated himself from the team to sequester himself in his office.

JJ quickly followed after him.

"Morgan, wait. I know you're going to continue working on the Weston unsubs case. Let me help."

He hesitated then gestured for her to join him in his office.

He looked at her almost suspiciously and asked, "Why?"

"Because I wasn't there when it happened, and I want to make up for it. Because I didn't help you find Doyle, and I want to make up for that. Because I lied to all of you about Emily's 'death', and I want to make up for it. Take your pick."

Emily's 'death'… When Garcia had asked about including JJ in their pursuit of Doyle, he'd said no on account of not getting her hopes up. The irony occurred to him now. Maybe she could've helped him find Doyle sooner.

"Would you have helped me find Doyle?"

"Of course," JJ said without hesitation. "Anything to bring Emily back sooner."

"It's just weird." He gazed at her pensively. "I know we don't always get along, but I've worked with you longer than anyone on this team other than Hotch. You felt like a constant. When he was reforming the team, it was me then you then Reid, Garcia, Elle, Prentiss, and Rossi. And then the Pentagon took you away, and ever since you came back, you've been running off whenever they need you."

JJ sighed. "Derek, I didn't have a choice about transferring to the Pentagon. What makes you think I actually had much of a choice about leaving them?"

"I thought you finished your assignment."

"Yeah, but apparently I also have other uses. Believe me, I'm thanking my lucky stars that I'm here at all." Feeling uncomfortable with the topic, JJ switched tracks. "Anyway, what say you and I start looking over the case?"

"Sure."

…

"JJ, can I ask you something?" Reid asked as the two of them got into the SUV.

"Sure, Spence," JJ said, starting the engine. "What's up?"

When he didn't say anything, she glanced at him. He looked rather pensive and unsure of himself. "Spence?"

"We just came from a former victim's house, and well, I've noticed for a while… umm… You're not as empathetic as you used to be. Well, you are with us like when we thought Emily was dead, but then during the job, you're not. "

It was JJ's turn to remain silent, and at this, Reid immediately retreated. "Sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"No, no. Spence, it's fine." JJ felt strangely grateful that they were confined to the SUV, so he couldn't physically run away. "Just give me a sec."

She took some time to mull over her answer.

"If you stop caring, you're jaded. If you care too much, it'll ruin you." At Reid's curious look, she expounded, "I was a liaison for almost 8 years, Spence. For a long time, I did a lot of caring, and at one point last year, I almost gave it up entirely. Being jaded hurts a lot less, you know? I became two completely different people: cold and hardened Agent Jareau for work and warm and caring JJ/Mommy for home. Then I remembered what a friend said once, 'It's still better to care.' Since then, I've been trying to merge the two back into one person, and I won't deny that being asked back to the BAU as a profiler instead of a liaison was a relief."

She thought about how empathy had become such a large part of her image over the years and added, "But I'm still me, Spence. Or at least, I'm trying to find myself again."

Immediately, Reid's brain began to profile – calling out "stressor" – but he ignored it. He focused on the slight vulnerability he heard in her voice and relished being the one to give comfort for once between the two of them.

"You will. You're JJ," Reid said confidently and was rewarded with a genuine smile.

…

"Any of you guys up for a late dinner?" Emily asked as the team strolled out of the elevator doors.

The team had just finished up a case across the country, and though it was just past ten, it still felt like dinnertime.

"I could go for a burger," Morgan said. He turned to Reid. "What about you, old man?"

As Reid nodded, Emily said, "Awesome. Rossi? JJ? Hotch?"

"As long as we go somewhere quality," Rossi responded.

"Don't we always?" Morgan joked causing Rossi to roll his eyes.

"Sorry, guys," JJ said, checking her watch. "I just want to get home, see Henry, and sleep."

"Same," Hotch said, opening the BAU bullpen doors for everyone.

Walking into the bullpen, JJ suddenly stopped short causing the rest of the team to crash into her. Sitting at her desk was none other than…

"Madam Secretary."

"Jennifer," the Secretary of State greeted. "I'd heard you were on your way back."

"Ma'am?"

"It seems I'm in need of your services for the first time since you left. And as it is rather urgent, would you come along please?"

Hotch stepped forward. "Ma'am, we just got back from a very long case. Everybody on my team needs rest, and –"

"Hotch," JJ stopped him. "It's fine."

"No, it's not." Rossi frowned at her. "Just seconds ago, you were rejecting our offer to a late dinner because you're too tired and want to get back to your family."

JJ never got to respond because something occurred to Reid. "What about your business trip a couple months ago?"

"What about it, Spence?"

"It wasn't for the State Department?"

JJ and the Secretary exchanged glances. "Umm… no. I – "

"I thought you were working for State," Emily said, brow furrowed in confusion.

"But what department did I initially transfer to?"

"Defense," Hotch answered.

"Exactly. After I ended up at the Pentagon, I…" JJ trailed off trying to find the right phrasing.

"She was too good to be hoarded by one department," the Secretary said, placing her hand on JJ's shoulder and giving her a slight, playful shake. "Defense, State, Justice, Homeland Security… Impressed too many people, this one. Ended up with an office twice as big but with four times the paperwork."

JJ blushed at the compliment.

"Anyways," the Secretary said with a brisk change in tone. "We really do need to get going. Don't worry. It's urgent but not long."

JJ sighed and trudged off after her. On her way through the BAU bullpen doors, she turned back to the team, caught Morgan's understanding nod, and waved goodbye. "See you guys later."

…

JJ stared at the terrorist through the interrogation window.

"Can you bring him to the observation room? I'd like a go at him."

"Excuse me?" Agent Taylor, the local FBI field agent, asked.

"I'd… like… to speak… with him," JJ said slowly, wondering how her previous statement could have been confusing.

"Yeah, we got that," Morgan said on Taylor's behalf. "But did you say 'observation room'?"

"I'd rather we talked privately."

JJ continued to stare through the window and ignored the strange looks being thrown her way.

Emily began to protest, "JJ…"

"Look," JJ said firmly, halting hers and the others' protests. "I'm about to get my hands a little dirty, and I'd rather you not watch."

"Are you sure?" Hotch asked.

"Yes," JJ stated confidently.

Hotch could see a plea in her eyes for him to trust her, so he said, "All right. Bring Habaza in here and let's empty the room."

JJ nodded her thanks. The others were slightly stunned by Hotch's assent but moved to comply.

After some local field agents secured Habaza to a chair and evacuated the room, JJ leaned against a table and asked, "Do you know who I am?"

Habaza didn't react to her at all.

"I'm Agent Jareau, but perhaps Pearl Crescent will sound more familiar to you?"

Habaza's eyebrows furrowed slightly, but he did his best to act otherwise unbothered.

"Here's the deal," JJ said, her voice calm and quiet. "You give me all the information you have on this attack, and I let you get off easy – send you off to Gitmo."

"You are nothing." Habaza snarled

"Oh, Yousef," JJ's tone was patronizing as if speaking to a child. "Keep telling yourself that."

He glared at her, and JJ smirked.

Knowing it would antagonize him, she kept her tone pleasant and cheery. "I have the power to end you. I know for a fact that there are some people in your hometown seething. I know they're looking for someone to blame for the failed Reveille operation, and you know what? I have no problem making that person you. I will personally drop you off at your hometown with thanks, hugs, and kisses. How do you think that'll work out for you?"

"You wouldn't. Your government would not authorize my release." Habaza smiled triumphantly, certain that she was bluffing. He was, after all, Yousef Habaza, a known terrorist. To release him would be unthinkable.

JJ mirrored his smile with one of her own. "You've heard of me. You know I don't need any authorization to do anything. I have the power to be your judge, jury, and even executioner."

Habaza's smile faded. "Then this is a death sentence."

"No, that would be too easy." JJ leaned forward until her eyes were level with his. "This is the sentence of a miserable, pathetic life."

"As if you were capable of such a thing," Habaza spat, trying to maintain his pride and dignity.

JJ grimaced internally as specks of saliva hit her face. Outwardly, she leaned back lazily and grinned slyly at him.

"Oh, you know me better than that. Here's how it'll go: I'll drop you in Pakistan, all your assets will go to your wives and family – that's right to your wives, who will be undoubtedly glad to be rid of you – and you'll be all alone with no money, no home, no family, no friends, no support, only people that'll ignore or hate you. But don't worry, I'll make sure you're protected, and I'll make sure everyone knows who's protecting you. You'll get to live out the rest of your life, granted probably on the streets like a pathetic beggar."

Habaza glared at her with an intensity that suited the phrase "if looks could kill." He struggled against his restraints and muttered what JJ was sure to be profanities under his breath.

"And you know what's great for both of us?" JJ added, unbothered by his anger. "I'll be leaving alone the one thing that should matter to you the most: your faith. Because it doesn't matter what others think of you, right? You're doing all this for your god, and He'll know the truth that the others won't: that you never betrayed him or your cause. You get to keep your relationship with your god, and I get to continue on with my life guilt-free.

"Or you could tell me when, where, and how this next attack is supposed to happen. You'll have betrayed your god, but your dignity and pride will remain intact. I won't breathe a word of this conversation to anyone, I'll send you off to Guantanamo a notorious and respected terrorist leader, and any and all blame for this failure is taken by the sloppy team that we intercept."

JJ leaned forward to meet his eyes once again, her calm blues met his fiery browns. "So what's more important to you? Your faith in the cause or your pride?"

Habaza glared at her and released another stream of profanities.

"That's not an answer." JJ leaned back then said mockingly, "Don't make me count down from 5."

Habaza looked like he was going to explode. Finally, he said, "Sarin gas in the ventilation system of the new convention center. The release is supposed to be tomorrow at opening night, but the set up is tonight."

She exited the room, nodding for the officer standing in the hallway to move Habaza back to his holding cell and wiping her face.

"I got it," JJ said as she approached the team then relayed the details she had been given.

"Good," Hotch said without hesitation. "Let's get on it."

As the team moved to scatter, Rossi held JJ back.

"This the sort of thing you did with the Pentagon? Slapping people around behind closed doors."

She gave him her best innocent look. "I never laid a hand on him, Rossi."

"Did you threaten him?"

"No more than the rest of you did."

Rossi remained unconvinced. "Then what was all that about 'getting your hands a little dirty'?"

JJ sighed. "I've had to do things I'm not proud of, Rossi. Still occasionally have to do things I wish I didn't. But really, I didn't do anything to him."

He gave her a penetrating stare, but JJ had gotten so used to Hotch's that she didn't find it the least bit unsettling.

When Rossi still didn't say anything, JJ rolled her eyes. "All right. Think about whatever you think I could have done, think about the person you know me to be, and then tell me you actually believe that I would do something like that. Can you do that?"

His penetrating stare continued. "You have changed."

"Enough for you to doubt me?"

"No, I guess not," he relented.

JJ smiled and nodded. "Then let's go stop some terrorists."

…

They barely greeted one another before getting down to business.

"Thanks for the intel on Habaza," JJ said, while making sure her bluetooth headset was comfortably positioned.

"No problem," C said before asking, "You on the way to the office?"

With no office in Quantico and no privacy or time at home, JJ's drives to and from work had become a common time for their phone calls.

"Yeah," JJ confirmed. "How's the team?"

"We've had several missions since that night – all successful."

"That's a relief."

The run-in with the BAU had been one mishap more than they would've liked. Though they had run into local law enforcement or company security teams before, the BAU had proved to be a much bigger, much more tenacious problem.

"And how goes their investigation?"

"It's practically at a standstill. I've been working with Agent Morgan, so if he makes any substantial progress, I'll know."

"And how are you managing?"

"It's been getting easier."

And it had been, though not as quickly as she would have liked. As time went on, she could forget what happened. That was until her next meeting with Morgan or call to C. Then, it would all rush back: the guilt, the betrayal, the subterfuge. But each time, the intensity would be less than the previous, and eventually JJ hoped she wouldn't feel any of it at all.

"Good. Take care of yourself."

"You too."

…

"You seem sad."

JJ looked up from her pancakes to see Garcia looking at her with a concerned expression.

Despite all the odds, the two had actually managed to meet fairly regularly on Tuesday mornings for breakfast after JJ's transfer to the Pentagon. And though JJ had returned to the BAU, they still met on the occasional Tuesday morning, even inviting other members of the BAU when they felt like it.

"What're you talking about? I'm fine," JJ said with a forced smile, hoping Garcia would drop it.

But she didn't.

"Are you sure? You're not as quick with a smile. I tried to give you your space. I know it's hard working with profilers. Well, I mean… not you… now that you're a profiler… I meant everyone else… uh, I mean… I'm just trying to be a friend, and friends do this. You know? They look out for each other, and…"

"I know," JJ reassured her. "It's ok. I'm fine, really. I just… sometimes I remember things, and… I hate lying to the team."

"Are you talking about Emily? Hun, that's over."

"Yeah, yeah, it is." JJ forced a smile on her face. "And I'm so glad for that."

"We forgave you and the bossman for that, Jayje. And if you had to hide anything else from us," – JJ nearly flinched at that – "We'll forgive you for that too. We're a family. That's what families do."

"You're going to have to remind me of that."

"Always."

JJ responded with a genuine smile.

"Now," Garcia said exuberantly. "Tell me what shenanigans my godson has been up to."

JJ gladly obliged and began her story about Henry's obsession with the TARDIS toy that "Unc Spencey" had just gotten him.

…

Girls' Night Out.

It had been one of the things Emily had missed most during her stay in Paris. As Garcia got up to get another round for the three of them, Emily looked over at Cheeto-Breath.

_Emily opened the apartment door and to her surprise found JJ._

_Ushering JJ inside, she quickly scanned the hallway and closed the door._

_Despite being inside her apartment, Emily spoke with a hushed voice. "What are you doing here?"_

_JJ made no attempt to lower her voice and strode to the kitchen. "I was in the neighborhood."_

"_Really?" Emily scoffed, trailing behind. "You just happened to be in Paris – in _this_ neighborhood – and decided to drop by for a visit?"_

_JJ shrugged nonchalantly. "In the neighborhood, this side of the Atlantic, whatever." At Emily's still wary expression, JJ said, "Oh relax, would you? I followed protocol, made sure this was all safe, etc etc. Besides, I got you a present."_

_JJ placed a previously unnoticed bag on the counter and began to pull out bottles._

"_Booze?"_

"_Yeah." JJ glanced around the kitchen. "Where do you keep your glasses?"_

"…" _Emily remained slack jawed for a moment then sprang into action. "I'll get them."_

_She retrieved a pair of cups. "Sorry, I don't have any wine glasses or tumblers. With the medication then the ulcer…"_

"_That's healed, right?" JJ asked. At Emily's nod, she continued, "Good. I figured you could use a night to relax, to shake off the false identities, to just be Emily Prentiss."_

_She poured two glasses, handed one to Emily, and raised her own. "To Emily Prentiss and her future return."_

_They drank and subsequently giggled their way through several bottles._

"_I still can't believe you did this to me!"_

"_What?"_

_Emily's voice rang with exasperation. "The names and nicknames you gave me! Bebe, C.C., and Deedee?" _

"_Oh come on." JJ unsuccessfully tried to hide her smirk. "There's nothing wrong with those names." _

"_Jayje!"_

"_There's actress Bebe Neuwirth, C.C. Babcock from _The Nanny_, and I have a friend named Deedee. At least I didn't give you something like – oh I don't know – W.W. or X.X." _

"_Who on Earth would have the initials X.X.?" Emily spluttered._

_JJ thought for a moment and then grinned in triumph. "Luna Lovegood from _Harry Potter _universe marries a descendent of Charles Xavier_ _from the _X-Men_ universe and then names their son after her father: Xenophilius Xavier."_

_Emily remained silent and looked at JJ strangely. Finally she said, "Your mind is a very strange thing."_

_JJ grinned happily and raised her glass. "Only when it's drunk."_

_"I'll drink to that," Emily said, shaking her head amusedly._

_JJ giggled and promptly fell off the couch._

_They fell asleep like that: JJ curled up on the floor and Emily sprawled across the couch. _

_Several hours later, Emily awoke to the tinkling of glass._

"_Sorry," JJ whispered as she cleared the coffee table. "Just cleaning up before I head out."_

_Emily groggily tried to clear her mind. "Wait… you're leaving? What time is it?"_

"_Almost noon."_

"_I'll help." Emily groaned as she sat up._

"_No, it's all right," JJ said. "I made this mess; I clean it up."_

"_I don't remember much, but I'm pretty sure _we _made this mess."_

_As she helped JJ collect the cups and bottles, she noticed that JJ's eyes were red and the bags under her eyes were dark and deep._

"_Are you sure you should be going anywhere like that?" Emily asked gesturing at her face._

"_You're not a vision of beauty either," JJ responded snarkily. Emily didn't doubt that for a second. "Besides, I don't really have much choice."_

_After they gathered the last of the bottles, JJ got her things and prepared to leave. She stepped out of the bathroom looking more human and even slightly presentable. _

"_Impressive. You actually look human," Emily joked. Then her expression turned serious, and she pulled JJ into a hug. "Thank you for everything. And I'm sorry you had, no, have to do this."_

_As JJ pulled away, she gave Emily a small smile. "I do whatever it takes to protect my family."_

Emily shook her head and brought herself back to the present.

"You're staring at me," JJ said in a singsong voice.

"Just thinking about your visit to Paris."

"Yeah? It was fun." JJ began to fiddle guiltily with her cup. "I should've visited more often."

"No, no," Emily said quickly. "The Scrabble games were great. You have no idea how much they helped."

She watched Garcia wait at the bar for their drinks then turned to JJ.

When they'd talked during their Scrabble games, it'd always been about how she was doing in Paris or how the team was doing back home. It'd rarely if ever focused on JJ. Emily knew it couldn't have been easy for her, and yet the familiarity and ease with which JJ had handled everything made her wonder. Not once had Emily imagined JJ in the cloak-and-dagger business, not because she believed JJ to be incapable, but because it seemed far from her usual sense of style. And Emily wondered how exactly JJ was handling it all.

"You know I'm here for you, right?"

"Yeeaahh?" JJ questioningly dragged the word out, confused by Emily's sudden question.

"If you ever want to talk about your Pentagon job to someone who understands, I'm here."

JJ was about to respond but noticed Garcia approaching their table. Instead she nodded and gave Emily a grateful smile.

And their Girls' Night Out continued with Garcia none the wiser about Paris, Scrabble, or the cloak-and-dagger business.

…

"Mind if I join you?"

"JJ?" Hotch looked up at hearing the familiar voice. "Not at all."

He was reminded of the first time they had been together at the diner.

_Exhausted but needing time alone, Hotch headed to his usual diner._

_The last few days had been strange. Not once had he imagined Elle shooting an unsub, going AWOL, and then resigning. And he couldn't help but feel responsible. Having a press conference to get the Fisher King, telling Elle to go home, letting Elle be the bait… those had all been his decisions. Well, his and Jason's but for the moment, it felt like all him, and he needed some time alone to sort through his thoughts before heading home to Jack and Haley._

_He pushed open the door and much to his surprise saw JJ sitting at a corner booth._

"_Mind if I join you?"_

_JJ's head jerked up in surprise. "H-hotch," she stuttered. "Of course."_

_He smiled reassuringly and sat opposite her._

"_What are you doing here?" she asked, feeling very off-footed._

"_I actually come here quite often." _

"_Oh." JJ looked down feeling – though she hadn't thought it possible – even more awkward._

"_And you?"_

"_After I left work, I just drove around and ended up here." She glanced around the joint. "I've never been here before."_

"_So what's going on up here?" Hotch tapped his head to indicate her thoughts._

"_Just thinking about why I don't like the woods." _

_Hotch knew JJ was good at deflection, but this response seemed simple, unusual, and absent-minded enough to be true. Normally, he would let her have her privacy, but this time she had made the first move._

"_And why's that?" _

"_It's actually kind of funny, the story I told Morgan and Reid." And though he noticed her side-step, he let it pass. He smiled gently and nodded for her to continue. If he could help JJ feel better, then maybe he'd feel like a better Unit Chief and less guilty about Elle._

JJ, however, was reminded of a different time.

"_JJ?"_

_JJ looked up quickly from the coffee she had been stirring absent-mindedly. "Hotch. Hey."_

"_Mind if I join you?"_

"_Not at all." JJ gestured for him to sit._

"_You all right?" Hotch asked._

_Since their first meeting in the diner, it had not been uncommon for the two of them to run into each other there after a tough week at work. As they had gotten closer over time, the diner had turned into a sort of therapeutic grounds for them – a place where they could talk to each other about their problems with family, work, or whatever else. _

_This was the first time he'd seen her there since her transfer to the Pentagon._

"_You know that rule Will and I have about work and home?"_

"_The one about work not passing through the front door with you?"_

"_Yeah."_

"_What about it?"_

"_I just… I couldn't this time. Couldn't just shut it off. I was on my way home, and I just knew it wasn't going to work today." JJ tried to shake away the thoughts. "Anyway, what about you?"_

"_Pedophile on the Appalachian Trail," Hotch answered, intentionally leaving out the fact that Wyland had yet to be apprehended. He didn't need to make JJ feel worse._

_JJ grimaced. "That, I do not miss. You're not going to head home to Jack?" _

"_Jessica's got him tucked in by now, and I need to go home _not _thinking of pedophiles."_

_JJ nodded with understanding. _

"_You want to talk about it?" Hotch asked, eager to get his mind off his own problems. "Whatever's going on with you?"_

"_I can't."_

"_JJ…"_

"_No, Hotch, I'm not deflecting. I literally can't, not if I want to avoid being imprisoned for treason."_

_Hotch looked at her with concern. "You have to be able to talk to someone." _

_JJ shrugged noncommittally._

"_It doesn't matter. It's just a bureaucratic pile of steaming sh –" she stopped abruptly as the waitress approached their table._

_The waitress smiled at them and refilled their coffees. _

_As she walked away from their table, JJ joked, "I'll never get to finish that phrase." _

"_Good thing too." Hotch smiled. "That way Henry will never hear it."_

_JJ laughed. "I'd never even try saying it at home."_

_The next half an hour was spent regaling each other with amusing stories about their children. After JJ finished a particularly funny story about Henry explaining the concept of "make believe" to Reid, she looked down at her watch. _

"_Yikes. We should probably get home to our kids."_

_As they neared the door, Hotch laid a hand on JJ's arm and said, "Next time you're feeling caught up in things, call me. All right? Even if you can't talk about work, I can still distract you with other stuff." _

_JJ smiled at him. "Only if you promise to do the same."_

"Are you all right?" Hotch asked, suddenly looking concerned.

"I'm fine." JJ smiled at him. "I just figured you'd be here. Hope you don't mind."

"No, it's fine, but uh, why would you think I'd be here? Work's been fine, well, as fine as our work can get."

"I was thinking more along the lines of Beth."

"Oh," Hotch mouthed, fingers nervously strumming the tabletop. She'd certainly hit the nail right on the head. He remained silent for a few seconds before asking, "Do you think Jack will approve?"

"Hotch, I've never met her," JJ reminded him. "But I'm sure she'll like him. Any person in their right mind would."

"Would you like to meet her?" When surprise spread across JJ's face, Hotch immediately retracted. "Nevermind. Sorry."

"It's fine, Hotch. Would you like me to meet her?"

Hotch shrugged. "I haven't dated anyone since Haley, and that was high school. I feel like an awkward teenager all over again."

"And you'd like… a wingman?"

"I guess."

"Wouldn't Rossi be better suited for that?"

"I'd be more afraid that he'd scare her away."

JJ laughed. She could picture it now: Rossi teasing Hotch relentlessly, Beth being torn between laughter and discomfort. "Nah, he'd take it easy on you. But if you like, we could do a sort of double date. Will and I haven't had an evening out in a while, and I know Henry would like to spend some time with Jack and Penelope."

"Oh god," Hotch said immediately. The last time Garcia had spent time with the children the BAU parents had been greeted by overly hyperactive children who seemed to have completely forgotten the definition of calm, much less sleep. Garcia had been unapologetic, herself hopped up on sugar and wondering why the two "party poopers" couldn't lighten up.

"Though maybe this time," JJ said. "We can leave the trio with someone who can control her."

"That person doesn't exist," Hotch responded, shaking his head.

JJ laughed in agreement. "Well, maybe we can bring the kids along then. Jack's going to have to meet Beth sometime, right?"

Hotch nodded. "All right, but are you sure I'm not imposing?"

"Absolutely," JJ said without hesitation. "You're always there for me. I want to make sure I do the same for you."

Hotch smiled at her. Then suddenly, he said, "I'm glad you're back with the BAU."

"Me too," JJ responded with a smile of her own.

Nothing could change the fact that the BAU was family.

…

_Thanks for reading!_

Happy 150th episode, everyone!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: I finally updated!

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, which incidentally is the same group who reviewed "The Cons of Perfection", so double thanks!

… ...

The team sat around the round table as Garcia briefed them on their next case. She was about to pull up pictures of the icky crime scenes when she was interrupted by buzzing.

She looked around for the offending object and spotted it sitting on the table in front of JJ.

"Sorry," JJ said quickly, grabbing her cell phone.

As she read her new text message, she frowned and glanced out the round table room's windows toward the bullpen doors.

"Sorry," JJ muttered absentmindedly and headed for the door. "Keep going. I'll catch up on the plane."

She exited the bullpen doors as one of the elevators opened to reveal a CIA operative that she had worked with the previous year. She glanced around then pulled him aside, and they spoke in hushed voices until she said, "I know someone who can help."

JJ led him through the bullpen doors and up the stairs to the round table room.

"Hey, sorry to interrupt again. Everyone, this is Michael. Michael, this is my team: technical analyst Penelope Garcia, and Special Agents Hotchner, Rossi, Morgan, Reid, and of course, you remember Emily Prentiss."

"Should I?" Michael asked, then tilted his head slightly in acknowledgement. "Ah, of course."

"We've worked together?" Emily eyed Michael curiously.

"Amsterdam," he answered.

Vague memories began to trickle back into Emily's mind. "Oh..." Then she asked JJ, "How'd you know we worked together if we can't even remember?"

"I've read your files," JJ shrugged.

Looking up at her quizzically, Reid said, "I thought you said you couldn't get Emily's whole file."

"Not at the time. When Hotch called me, I needed the information fast, so I only got what we needed. But when I had to relocate Emily I needed to know her complete history. I wouldn't be doing my job if I put her some place where she'd pissed people off before.

"Actually, speaking of your history, Em, Michael and I need to talk to you." JJ jerked her head toward a door. "In private."

They exited the round table room through the lesser-used door and found themselves some privacy.

Emily gave Michael a once-over. "Your name wasn't Michael when we first met, was it?"

"No," he said simply, knowing she would understand the fickle nature of a CIA operative's identity.

Emily nodded. "So what's up?"

JJ began to brief her. "We can't give you all the details unless you agree to help, but I can say this: your friend Tsia Mosely was part of a US-France joint operation years ago. Something's come up that needs to be resolved, but only Tsia would know how. You didn't work with her on it, but you know how she operated. The CIA could use your help."

Emily hesitated before asking, "And how are you involved?"

"As a liaison for the State Department, there are some international matters that I have become specialized in handling. This is one of them." Voice softening, JJ added, "I'll understand if you don't want to do this, Em."

Emily wasn't too sure about stepping back into her CIA activities, but if she could set something right for Tsia then she would. "I'm in."

"Good," Michael said. "I'll brief you on our way."

JJ poked her head back into the round table room just as Hotch was saying, "Wheels up in 30."

"Sorry, Hotch. You're going to be down two agents on this one."

… ...

"All right, let's have a little family talk now that we're away from Mom and Dad," Morgan began and looked around at Garcia, Emily, Reid, and Rossi.

The five had gathered in Morgan's office per his request. Something was going on with JJ, and he needed to make sure it wasn't just him.

Reid's nose wrinkled in confusion. "I thought Rossi and Hotch were Mom and Dad."

"Woah, wait a minute," Rossi protested. "Does that make me Mom?"

"No," Emily said a little too quickly. Rossi shot her a warning look. "You could be Grandpa." When he began to glare, she added, "Or not. Nevermind. You know, it's not… It doesn't matter."

"Anyone else think there's something off with JJ these days?" Morgan said, getting to the matter at hand.

The other four exchanged glances but were all reluctant to speak. They had indeed noticed changes within the blonde and had each spoken to her about it. But they all knew how much JJ loved her privacy and were therefore hesitant about sharing their conversation with the others.

"This feels skeevy," Garcia said. "And why aren't we including bossman?"

"Because Hotch would stop us before we even start," Morgan answered.

"Maybe because that's the right thing to do," Reid responded.

"Look, guys. I know we don't profile within the team, but I'm concerned. The last time something like this happened…" Morgan trailed off and looked pointedly at Emily.

Losing Emily – or rather thinking he had lost Emily – was one of the worst experiences of his life, and considering his life, that was pretty bad. It also meant he had no desire to repeat the experience with JJ. Though they had had their differences over the years, he had become rather close to the blonde stunner during the past year.

"I don't think she's in danger," Emily said confidently, having just worked with JJ on their special op. "JJ's changed a little bit. That's all. She had tough jobs with State and the Pentagon and whatnot, but she adapted. And she's good at it."

Reid thought back to his conversation with JJ about her finding herself again and vocalized his agreement with Emily's assessment.

"It's not just change," Morgan pressed on. "Little inconsistencies are piling up, and she always has some sort of convenient cover answer. Reid, man, you've been the one noticing them."

"Like _Fringe_," Garcia said suddenly.

When the others responded with blank stares, she elaborated, "It's this great show. You should all watch it. Live. You should watch it live. See, their ratings aren't doing so well, so they might get canceled. I've thought about hacking into their database and changing the ratings info, but everyone knows the numbers are terrible.

"Anyway, Olivia – who's the female lead from our universe – and Altlivia – that's the Olivia from the other universe – ended up in each other's universes. Altlivia's assignment was to pretend that she was Olivia, but they grew up in different universes, so they're similar but slightly different. And Peter – all you need to know about him for now is that Polivia is THE_ Fringe _OTP – he noticed the differences, but he believed her excuse about being changed by seeing the other side because he just wanted to be with her."

Garcia finished her ebullient spiel with an excited flourish and was disappointed to see that her fangirling was met with blank expressions, slackened jaws, and cocked eyebrows.

Only Reid seemed to show some appreciation for her babble, and she said to him, "You should try it, Reid. It may not be _Dr. Who_, but I think you'd enjoy it."

"Sure, Baby Girl," Morgan said, his tone clearly indicating that he had no idea what she just said. Sure he enjoyed Kurt Vonnegut and some other scifi works, but he didn't care to invest time or energy in tv shows, and he certainly didn't know what the hell an OTP was. "But I don't think that – whatever that was – happened to JJ."

Rossi, who had stood back and watched the "kids" talk, finally decided to intervene. "Morgan, I get that you're concerned, but even if there was something going on, we can't do anything about it until it gets out of hand or JJ asks for help. For now, though, I suggest you not worry about it."

Realizing that he stood alone on the subject, Morgan nodded in concession though he promised himself to continue looking after JJ just in case.

As they left Morgan's office, Reid approached Garcia and asked, "So what exactly is _Fringe _about?"

… ...

Morgan didn't have long to ponder the JJ situation – or not ponder, as the case would have it – as the team got swept up in a whirlwind of a case.

But thankfully, it was local, and they could use their bullpen as the investigation center.

Having just returned from some canvassing with Hotch, JJ and he updated Rossi and Prentiss on their findings.

"Where are Morgan and Reid?" Hotch asked once they had relayed all they knew.

"Garcia found a link to a Senator…" Emily shuffled through some papers to confirm the name before continuing, "Clarke. They went to talk to him."

JJ's face fell. She knew Senator Clarke, she knew Morgan, and she knew that the two of them in the same room equaled trouble.

"When did they leave?" she asked quickly.

"About ten minutes ago. Why?"

JJ quickly disappeared leaving Rossi's question hanging awkwardly unanswered.

… ...

As JJ sped down the hallway, she could hear Morgan's and Clarke's raised voices. She grimaced and increased her pace.

"That's enough, boys. I got this," JJ said, striding into Senator Clarke's office.

Magnificently red-faced, Clarke stood glowering behind his desk. JJ gave a subtle shake of the head to Morgan who was about to protest and was glad to see him acquiesce when Reid pulled him back slightly.

She planted herself directly in front of Clarke's desk in hopes that removing Morgan from Clarke's line of sight would make him forget about Morgan altogether. She didn't intend to emasculate Morgan or anything of the sort, but she was in a much more secure position for this gamble of a scenario.

"Well, well, well… if it isn't the illustrious Agent Jareau," Clarke sneered. "Come to bust my chops?"

"Watch the attitude or I'll do a lot more than that," JJ retorted coldly.

And she meant it. During the previous year, she had put up with a lot of crap from many politicians, but Senator Clarke had somehow managed to distinguish himself as particularly obnoxious. She would have liked nothing more than to put him in his place.

Clarke was unimpressed. "As if you could."

"Oh don't challenge me, Clarke," JJ berated. She placed her hands on his desk and leaned in towards him. "You know I can."

Behind JJ, Morgan and Reid watched the heated exchange, both with raised eyebrows. They were surprised by both JJ and Clarke's familiarity with each other and the uncharacteristically harsh manner in which JJ spoke.

Behind the desk, Clarke mirrored JJ's actions.

"I'm so scared." His voice was full of mockery. "You going to call your buddies in the Cabinet? Get them to do your dirty work?"

"I don't need to," JJ responded resolutely. "I have enough dirt to end you."

"That goes both ways," Clarke spat back.

They leaned in closer, faces inches apart, and unlike the confrontation with Morgan, their voices dropped ominously with every sentence.

"You have a lot further to fall," JJ hissed.

Leaning back, Clarke smirked triumphantly and quirked an eyebrow.

"Doesn't matter. If I go down, I'm taking you with me."

… ...

At times like these, JJ wished she still had an office in Quantico. News of her clash with Senator Clarke had spread like wildfire, and she was getting a lot of curious looks from around the bullpen.

Morgan and Reid had tried numerous times to ask her about the threats she and Clarke had leveled at each other, but JJ refused to elaborate, saying only that they had nothing to worry about.

Needless to say, her reassurances fell on deaf ears. Already concerned about JJ's recent behavior, Morgan decided to keep an even closer eye on her in the future, and the rest of the team wasn't quite ready to let the issue drop yet either.

Morgan, Rossi, and Hotch had all decided not to retreat to their offices but rather stay in the bullpen with the other three profilers to go over the evidence at hand. JJ was trying (and failing) to concentrate on her portion of the paper stack when the Director of the FBI entered the bullpen with the Secretary of State and her entourage in tow.

"Jennifer, with me," the Secretary said in a low, deadly voice.

JJ quietly rose from her chair and followed the Secretary to the round table room.

Everyone in the bullpen heard a very loud "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?" before the door closed, and the BAU members looked at each other with concern.

Uncomfortable silence filled the air.

It was broken by the Director, who said, "The Secretary of State has requested involvement in this case, and I expect that you will act accordingly and with respect." and promptly left without any affirmation from the team.

"She'll be ok," one of the Secretary's entourage said as he leaned casually against JJ's desk.

"Really?" Emily asked skeptically while staring intensely at the round table room's windows.

"Oh yeah. Jareau's her favorite."

Emily slowly turned her gaze away from the round table room to look at the speaker. He was a well-built, rather good-looking Asian man. Unlike the others he entered with, he alone seemed interested in interacting with the BAU. For that matter, he was the only one of the group to be relaxed. The others stood stiffly by and waited for their boss to re-emerge.

"Doesn't sound like it," Morgan said.

"It's mostly for show." He extended a hand towards Prentiss. "I'm Richard Shin."

Her hand met his in a firm, quick handshake. "Emily Prentiss."

"I know." At her raised eyebrow, he clarified, "I know who you all are. One doesn't work closely with Jennifer Jareau without hearing stories about the BAU. She really missed you guys."

"We missed her," Reid said with a hint of accusation in his voice.

"I don't doubt that. I know she wasn't given a choice, but I can't say I'm not incredibly grateful she spent that year with us."

"And what is it that you do?" Hotch asked as he eyed the man warily.

"Boss them around mostly," Shin said, gesturing at the rest of the entourage. He added with a gesture to the round table room, "And occasionally get bossed around by them."

"That's not very informative," Rossi noted with a frown.

Shin shrugged nonchalantly. "Well that's all I can give you."

Meanwhile in the round table room, the Secretary was berating JJ who stood stiffly and resolutely stared straight ahead.

"I would demand an answer to my question, but the answer's rather obvious isn't it."

"I'm human. I can make mistakes."

The Secretary shook her head. "Not you. Not this kind."

And JJ had to admit that she was right. What she had done in Clarke's office was the exact opposite of her typical work.

"Damn it, Jennifer," the Secretary sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "The best thing you can do is remove yourself from this case."

"Ma'am," JJ whined in protest.

"You want to take care of your team. I get it. But I am trying to take care of you," the Secretary said in a stern voice that was almost motherly. "Don't worry. I will take care of your team as well."

JJ nodded sullenly.

Silently, they exited the round table room.

"What are you doing?" Hotch asked as JJ grabbed her bag and shrugged her coat on.

"Taking time off," JJ responded shortly and headed for the BAU bullpen doors, eager to avoid an awkward Q&A. "I'll see you guys later."

Hotch turned to the Secretary incredulously. "You suspended her?" So as not to sound so insubordinate, he quickly added, "Ma'am."

"No, I merely encouraged her to relieve herself from this case." Before the BAU team could respond, she explained, "Senator Clarke is a man with a lot of political clout, which Jennifer is very well aware of. One does not get on his bad side without risking their careers."

Morgan frowned. "It sounded like JJ was already on his bad side."

"She is," Shin confirmed. "But luckily for her, she has friends in high places."

"Like you," Emily directed at the Secretary.

"Yes, Agent Prentiss. Like me. And even Elizabeth."

At the unexpected mention of her mother, Emily averted her eyes and her hands instinctively met to pick at her nails.

_Direct hit_, the Secretary thought as a smirk flitted across her lips. She couldn't help but enjoy a little teasing once in a while, especially considering she spent the majority of her time with manners and diplomacy.

"Anyhow, I don't want to interfere with your profiling process, but from now on, anything regarding Senator Clarke is passed by me or Agent Shin for approval first. Understood?"

… ...

_**A few days later**_

As the doorbell rang, JJ stood from the floor where she'd been playing with Henry. Toy cars and trucks were strewn all across the room.

"Wanna race Mommy to the door, Henry?" JJ asked after she quickly cleared a path to the door.

"Yeah!" Red fire truck still secured in his right hand, Henry jumped up and bolted out the room.

JJ made sure to stay half a step behind Henry the entire way. When they got to the front door, she scooped him up from behind and planted a kiss on his cheek.

"How'd you get so fast?" JJ asked and feigned being winded.

Henry merely giggled in response and squirmed in her arms.

Setting him down but keeping a hand on him, she opened the door. Standing there was a very amused Hotch.

"Hey, Hotch. Come in. I hope we didn't keep you waiting."

"Not at all."

"Unca Hotchy!" Henry raised his arms, signaling his desire to be picked up.

Hotch complied as he stepped through the doorway. "Hi, buddy. Watcha got in your hand there?"

"Twuck," Henry said proudly, shoving his prized possession right under Hotch's nose.

Hotch pulled his head back so he could actually see the toy. "A truck?"

"Mhmm! Twuck."

"All right, Henry, try saying 'truck' with me. Ready?" When Henry nodded, Hotch enunciated as clearly as he could, "Truck."

"Twuck!"

"You got to make the 'r' sound, buddy. Like a pirate: ARRR!"

"ARRRR!" Henry enthusiastically repeated, baring his tiny teeth.

JJ smiled fondly at the exchange.

"Hey, Hotch. I thought I heard your voice." Will appeared in the foyer, mixing bowl in one hand and a spoon in the other. "JJ, I can take Henry to the kitchen if you two need to talk business."

"Thanks, Will." She turned to Hotch as Will led Henry away. "You make a good pirate."

She led him to the couch and gestured for him to sit before settling herself at the other end.

"Actually, I don't."

JJ was intrigued by his response. "No?"

"Worst pirate _The Pirates of Penzance _has ever seen," Hotch said pointing at himself.

"Do tell."

"Maybe some other time," Hotch deflected. "Having fun?"

"Well, I get a few days off that I decided to make the most of. So yeah, tons of fun."

Hotch nodded and thought of the best way to broach the "why" behind her sudden vacation.

Noticing his hesitation, JJ asked, "Want to get right to it?"

He glanced at her sheepishly. "That obvious, huh?"

It wasn't really, but JJ had spent most of her time at the BAU practically acting as Hotch's second-in-command. After all the meetings, briefings, and late nights at the office, the two had become very in-tune with each other's intricacies.

"Yeah, that obvious."

"What was that?"

Hotch regretted his blunt phrasing and tone as soon as he said the words.

JJ took it rather gracefully and calmly asked for clarification that she didn't quite need. "What was what?"

"Where do I start? Your outburst with the Senator, the Secretary of State stepping in…"

"It's nothing to worry about," JJ tried to reassure him.

Hotch frowned at her response. Uncharacteristic behavior and interference from the powers that be didn't seem like nothing to worry about.

"Didn't sound like that from what Morgan and Reid told us."

"Hotch, really, it was nothing. After spending all that time with politics, I just get very easily annoyed with the bureaucratic piles of steaming –"

"JJ, incoming!" Will called out as Henry raced toward the living room.

"Doodoo," JJ finished lamely.

"Mommy!" Henry chirped as he nearly collided with JJ's knees. "Can Unca Hotchy stay for dinner?"

"You'll have to ask him, honey. He's a busy man."

Henry quickly clambered onto the couch between Hotch and JJ. Presenting his Uncle Hotch with the best puppy eyes he could, he repeated his request.

"I can't, buddy. I gotta go home and eat dinner with Jack."

Henry's face had fallen at the rejection but immediately perked up again at the mention of Jack.

"Jack Jack?"

"Yeah, and if your mom says yes, maybe you could see Jack this weekend."

Henry looked expectantly at his mother, and JJ had no choice but to smile and say, "Sounds like fun."

Not that she minded. It was nice seeing Hotch outside the office, suit and tie stored away in a closet and a smile on his face.

"Yay!" Henry exclaimed and slobbered a kiss on each of their cheeks. "I go help Daddy in kitchen now."

"Dinner with Jack tonight," JJ commented as Henry raced off. "I guess that means the case is over?"

"Yes," Hotch confirmed. "I'm going to have to talk to Dave about his profiling teaching practices. My presence should've told you that."

He smiled teasingly at her to make sure she wouldn't take his deadpan delivery seriously.

JJ rolled her eyes and sunk further into the couch cushions. "Cut me some slack. I've spent the last few days immersed in three-year-old's logic. Anyways, you could've wanted info on Clarke."

Hotch's expression sobered at the mention of the 'good' senator. "Speaking of Clarke, do I have reason to be concerned?"

"About me? Never," JJ joked, trying to make light of the situation.

"JJ," Hotch said seriously.

"Hotch, do I ever lie to you?"

"No, but you do keep secrets."

Thinking about her previous year's work, she said, "You know I don't have a choice."

After all, there was no way he could know about her current shenanigans. Or at least that's what she hoped.

"I'm not talking about that," Hotch responded, well aware of her thoughts. "I was thinking more along the lines of – oh, I don't know – a pregnancy and some job offers from the Pentagon…"

JJ fidgeted awkwardly.

"I thought we were past that."

Hotch sighed. She was right. They were supposed to be past that.

"Just promise you'll let me know if you need help."

An internal struggle started within her. On the one hand, she didn't want to make a promise to him that she wouldn't and couldn't keep. Her problems, unfortunately, had risen beyond Hotch's helping capabilities, and she wasn't going to trouble him with them if she could help it. But on the other hand, not promising would worry him further.

She finally settled on making the promise with a one-sided, additional clause that she would ask only for help that he could provide.

"Promise."

… ...

_Thanks for reading!_


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: I decided to post a shorter chapter now rather than make you all wait for a longer chapter. We all know by now that I'm not the fastest updater.

To those who've reviewed: Thank you for your kind words. I just hope I don't let you down.

… …

"How stupid is that?" JJ fumed.

"Uhhh…"

Morgan tried to figure out what to say as she punched the pads he was holding.

It had been a month since the Senator Clarke fiasco, and everything had pretty much returned to normal. Upon JJ's return, Morgan had kept a close eye on her until she called him out on it. In no uncertain terms, she informed him that she could take care of herself physically, politically, and every other -ally and that she would very much appreciate it if he would stop hovering.

At the present, they were continuing with their typical workouts with this particular session's focus being conditioning. With his knees on her feet, Morgan held up pads for JJ to punch every time she completed a sit-up.

"Since when do men _want _to ask for directions?"

She punched the pads again.

The teasing retort 'Since when do women _not _want to ask for directions?' immediately popped into his head, but he was 100% sure that answer wouldn't go over well with her. Feeling like there was no good answer, Morgan said, "JJ, maybe you should talk to Emily or Penelope about this."

"But you're a guy," JJ said with another set of punches. "You can help me understand."

Morgan rolled his eyes. "We're not all the same, you know."

Slightly out of breath, JJ asked, "So… you wouldn't… ask for… directions?"

Morgan frowned as he noticed a decrease in the power behind her punches. More glad than he would admit for the opportunity to change subjects, he said, "Come on, Pennsylvania Petite. Don't power off on me now. Push through! Only eleven more left."

"Wow," someone voiced from the doorway, preventing JJ's snappy retort.

Morgan and JJ turned in unison to see Garcia staring at them. Undeterred by their curious expressions, she continued staring unabashedly, drinking in their bodies – JJ clad only in a sports bra and tight yoga pants and Morgan only in shorts and a sleeveless T-shirt.

"Oh don't let me stop you," she said vacantly. "Carry on."

Morgan and JJ exchanged bewildered glances. Garcia didn't often come down to the FBI gym, and if she did, it was to vent to her Chocolate Thunder or her Gumdrop, not to stand and stare.

"Did you come down here for something?" Morgan asked.

"Nothing that can't wait."

Garcia had seen the buffness that was Derek Morgan with nothing but a towel on. She'd also seen JJ in short shorts showing off those magnificent legs and ass. What she'd never seen before were their toned, sweaty bodies so close together, and wow was it hot.

She swallowed.

Concerned by her strange behavior, Morgan put down the pads and stood. "Baby Girl?"

When it was clear they weren't going to give her a show, Garcia huffed, "Oh fine. Briefing in the round table room in ten minutes."

As she left, Morgan and JJ shrugged at each other before heading for the showers.

… …

"Baby Girl, give me some good news," Morgan said, as he and JJ entered.

Garcia gave Morgan a grin worthy of the Cheshire Cat. "Our babies will be both beautiful and stylish."

Seeing the unhappy look on Hotch's face, Rossi stepped in. "About the case, Garcia. Got anything good for us?"

"Yes or no, depending on how you look at it. The Weston unsubs struck again, but this time, we have video! I kept an open search on the parameters that you guys gave me those few months ago, and then this popped up. At least, I'm pretty sure it's them."

Garcia pulled the footage up on the screen.

"This, ladies and gentlemen, took place at the Budinger Auction House last night in Boston, Massachusetts."

"That looks like them all right," Morgan said as he observed their precise tactical maneuvers.

Hotch, however, furrowed his eyebrows and leaned in for a closer look. "Remember the terrorist case in New York? The multiple shooters…"

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Prentiss asked, looking at the screen with intensified interest.

Reid mentally replayed the Weston memory and agreed. "Hotch is right. It's a different five. Well, sort of. Some of them are the same, some aren't."

"How many?" JJ asked.

She heavily felt the need to headdesk, a term she had learned in her online chats with Garcia during her time away from the BAU. However, it was neither the time nor the place, and she had to maintain appearances.

But she couldn't help but wonder what happened. The team had equipment to prevent this sort of evidence. So why the video? They'd gotten sloppy? An equipment malfunction? Either way, there was going to be hell to pay.

She was snapped out of her thoughts by Reid who grabbed the remote from its place in front of Garcia. He rewound, fastforwarded, and then froze the video.

"There's one person I'm not sure about, but two are definitely different this time around."

The team stared at the frozen frame on the screen, and Rossi said out loud the question they were all thinking (minus JJ, but they didn't know that):

"How many people are we dealing with?"

… …

Paper.

Lots of paper.

Piles and piles of paper.

They were quite possibly her least favorite part of the job.

She had read so many and still had so many left to read. Glancing tiredly at the Budinger Auction House's visitor sign-in list, Emily's eyes moved lazily down the page.

Natasha Moore

Isaac Araujo

Johnny Mosi

Amy den Adel

Adam Lewis

Irina Katz

Miriam Kolb

Wait.

Emily backtracked to the fifth name. Adam Lewis was the frequent alias of a colleague from her CIA days. It could've been a coincidence. She was pretty sure Adam Lewis was not an uncommon name by any means.

But what if it was him? The Weston Art Gallery had been under the CIA's watch, perhaps this location was as well.

Wanting a second opinion, she glanced at JJ's empty desk and decided to find her.

Emily pushed her chair back and stood. "I think I may have a lead. I'm going to go check it out."

"Want company?" Reid asked as he looked up from his notes. He had, of course, finished his many piles of papers hours ago and was in the process of cataloging his analyses.

Emily gazed around the bullpen. With Hotch, Rossi, Garcia, and Morgan all in their individual offices, she'd be leaving Reid alone. But she didn't want to share her thoughts just yet, so she said, "I think it's better if I handle it alone."

Reid gave her a quizzical look but shrugged his acceptance and sank his attention back into his notes.

As Emily walked the hallways, she bumped into just the person she was looking for.

"JJ, can I talk to you?"

JJ froze, feeling quite like a deer caught in headlights. She had just gotten off the phone with C and hadn't expected to encounter someone from the BAU just yet. She quickly cleared her thoughts and tried to act as normally as possible.

"Sure, Em. What's up?"

As Emily explained what she discovered, JJ found herself growing more and more uncomfortable. There was a chance Emily began to suspect that she was involved and was giving her a chance to explain herself before going to the rest of the team.

Was it improbable? Yes. What evidence of JJ's involvement could Emily possibly have? Yet despite the odds, there was a small part of JJ's mind that wouldn't relinquish its fear of the possibility.

"Why only me? Why not talk to the others about it?"

Emily gave her a weird look. "I want to make sure this pans out first, and no one else has experience with this sort of thing."

Relief shot through JJ's body.

"Right… Sorry," she let out an awkward laugh. "Sometimes I forget what is or isn't normal."

She was doubly relieved when Emily didn't give her excuse a second thought and plunged back into her previous thought stream.

"I think the CIA might know more than they're letting on, but I don't want to step on any toes. I'm going to talk to 'Adam', but can you look into it as well? Do your magical liaising stuff?"

JJ smiled weakly and said, "I'll see what I can do."

… …

JJ looked around the room. It was unusual for her to meet with anyone other than C, but given the situation, the two had agreed to include some of the others. After all, their lives were on the line as well.

She began the meeting.

"We have a problem. Since our initial contact, the BAU has continued looking for our team and recently obtained video footage from one of the operations."

A few of the men exchanged nervous glances.

"How that footage even exists, we'll discuss later. What's important is that they managed to figure out that we're more than just a five man team."

Looks of consternation spread across the room, and D whistled, "They're good."

"Can you do something with the evidence?" H asked.

JJ immediately shook her head. "Disappearing or altering evidence won't help. Have you forgotten we have someone with an eidetic memory on the team?"

She loved Spence. She really did. But his intelligence and special ability to remember everything was not something she appreciated at the moment.

"Well, you need to do something," E insisted.

And that was the problem. She was stuck in a weird sort of limbo, torn between the two sides. The fact that she could say "our team" in any given situation and mean either the BAU or the present group was indicative of that.

She weighed her options.

The BAU…

Or her creation…

Her creation…

Or the BAU…

She chose the lesser of two evils.

"I can't do anything but help them."

Before she could continue, she was interrupted.

"Help them? Do you _want _us to get caught?"

E glared furiously at her.

"Of course not," she protested. "But I don't want to arouse suspicion either."

"Really? You seem pretty eager to help them."

"How can I not? I'm part of their team."

"You're part of ours. Oh, no wait…" E paused to simulate a dramatic epiphany. "You left us."

JJ closed her eyes and sighed. Her decision to leave the group in favor of rejoining the BAU was not a popular one.

"That's enough, E," F barked sternly.

E shot her a petulant glance before complying.

"What I meant," JJ began to elaborate. "Is that my only option is to continue my façade of helping them with this investigation. I won't lie to them, but I give you all my word that I won't expose you."

"Us," F reminded her.

"Right," JJ gave her a slight smile. "I won't expose us."

D asked, "How are you going to manage that?"

"Agent Prentiss will be looking into the CIA and has asked me to do so as well. I will fulfill her wish but only so as to find out what can be found on us. Hopefully, there won't be anything, but I need each of you to be prepared to step up if I need you."

"Wait a second," E snarled. "We're not chess pieces that you can sacrifice for your end game."

Annoyed by his attitude but wanting to remain patient, JJ slowly turned to him. "No, you're not. But even if you were, do you really think I'd sacrifice any of you before myself?"

Not entirely convinced but unsure of what to say, E quieted again.

"K, make sure this doesn't happen again. After every op, I want full sweeps to ensure that we leave no evidence behind. If there is any trace left of any kind or magnitude, Garcia will find it, and we cannot let that happen. Is that understood?"

"Roger that," K responded. "Your Garcia may be good, but I've got better toys."

"Good. Now…" JJ looked around the room, her tone serious and threatening. A few of them averted their eyes. "Why the hell was there video evidence?"

… …

_Thanks for reading!_


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: This chapter is a sort of turning point. I can't have the BAU seem too ignorant for too long. That makes them appear stupid, and we all know they're not.

Anyway, hi ho hi ho off to the chap(ter) we go…

… …

The next few days found JJ scrambling around like a beheaded chicken.

When she wasn't reading through BAU consults or spending time with her family, she was hard at work monitoring Emily's progress. JJ had looked into Adam's report on the Budinger Auction House and found it to be delightfully useless. Emily, of course, had felt otherwise, but much to JJ's dismay, she didn't let it drop. Rather, she asked Adam to look into the matter further and even reached out to some additional old colleagues and contacts.

It was this more than anything that resulted in JJ's increased workload. Each person had spread out his or her own web for intel collection much like a telephone tree, resulting in an ever increasing network that JJ had to keep track of.

That didn't mean the liaising that Emily had asked her to do went undone. JJ asked K to extend her sweeps to the past missions as well. Illicit, electronic liaising she called it. When K called her with the results, JJ fabricated something that wasn't useful but couldn't be classified as useless either and relayed it to Emily.

After the previous mission's fiasco, JJ had also increased her involvement in prepping her other team's next mission. That meant obtaining and verifying intel, keeping track of everyone's availability, location scouting, and ironing out the details of their op strategy. Like her situation with K, most of this was delegated to the others, but she still had to keep track of their progress, the outcomes, and the overall picture.

Organized chaos.

That was her life.

Anyone who'd seen her previous office knew that was her specialty.

But somewhere amongst the chaos, something must have slipped by her.

"My lovelies, I've got something," Garcia said with a flourish as she pulled up her briefing presentation.

"What you got, Momma?" Morgan picked up his ipad and began to look through it.

"Courtesy of one of Emily's friends, we now have an encrypted document that's potentially linked to our unsubs. There's also information about the document: how they got it, what they think it could mean, why they think it's relevant. All that stuff."

If she had been in proper company, JJ would've given the screen a murderous glare. She had spent the last few days scrambling about trying to make sure there was nothing to find. To think that it was all for naught was extremely frustrating.

"Good," Hotch said, looking around the table. "Garcia and Reid, try to decrypt the document. The rest of us will look into the auxiliary details."

"There's also mention of a Pearl Crescent," Garcia added before the team could scatter. "It's supposed to be a possible terrorist person or group or something. I know there's a software company called that, but I doubt they're involved."

JJ furrowed her eyebrows and spoke as though she was deep in thought. "They're also a kind of butterfly."

Hotch asked, "Are they of any significance?"

"Not really," JJ said with a shrug. "They're pretty widespread, rather unremarkable looking, and of a typical size. But there could always be a personal connection."

She then added unnecessarily, "I wouldn't know."

"A butterfly," Rossi remarked. "That's an unusual name choice for a terrorist. Not the sort of thing that strikes fear in people."

Prentiss joked, "Maybe JJ's the unsub. She can pull off small and scary at the same time."

JJ let out something that sounded like the birth child of a cough and an awkward laugh.

The team laughed at her reaction.

"Relax, JJ," Morgan said, clapping a hand onto her shoulder. "We know you're not a terrorist."

Unsure of what to say, JJ laughed the joke off with the rest of the team, and much to her relief, they made nothing more of it, splitting off to start looking over their new evidence.

… …

"I know where they're going," Reid said, bounding through the bullpen doors.

"_We_ know where they're going," Garcia corrected as she trailed in after him. "_I_ found out the where."

Engrossed in his enthusiasm, Reid ignored her and plowed ahead with an explanation. "The encryption system seems complicated but is actually relatively simple. There's an alphanumeric code layered with a binary system, in which the digits of the characters' ASCII codes were assigned a four bit binary string. Once I figured out the binary system and converted the ASCII codes back into their intended characters, the document was easy to read, but that's where the alphanumeric code came in. The key length of the…"

He trailed off as he caught a look from Hotch signifying that he was babbling.

"Once I figured out the encryption, it was easy," Reid finished simply.

"Easy because you had me," Garcia muttered.

The other profilers smirked to one another at the familiar display of genius rivalry but said nothing, allowing Reid to continue again.

"The document is a memo referencing both a location and a time. It mentions 'a unit's passing after fall of the stilled sun,' which if you translate into Latin gives you the etymology of solstice. I figured that out to be an hour after sunset of the summer solstice – that would be today. And then the place we found to be –"

"Oh, so now it's 'we'?" Garcia interrupted him. "Nuh uh, Boy Wonder. That part was all me."

"I am THE genius."

"No, you're A genius who happens to be in the presence of another genius."

"You admitted my brain works faster than yours."

"That was ONE TIME, and I was stressed out! This time it was mine."

"If it weren't for MY decryption, you wouldn't –"

"Enough," Hotch interrupted their squabbling. "Daddy's proud of you both. Now, what did you find?"

He sighed when the only response was a group of amused faces. "What? I can make a joke."

"At work?" Prentiss said, keeping her voice vacant to continue the pretense of being stunned.

Hotch rolled his eyes and gestured for Garcia to resume her account.

"After Reid figured out the time reference, we started narrowing down possible locations. The memo talks about a company and its recent advances in something called 'carbon nanotubes'. Reid tried getting all science-y with it and look into materials and whatnot, which was – heh – a total dead end. 'Thank you, Mario! But our princess is in another castle!' Me, however, the right castle. As your friendly neighborhood oracle of all things knowable, _I_ had the genius brain stroke to look for…"

She trailed off as she – like Reid before her – received Hotch's 'you're babbling' look.

"Ironlock Dynamics. It's a defense contractor organization in DC."

"All right," Hotch said, nodding at Garcia. He turned to the others. "We have plenty of time. I'd like us to be there a couple hours beforehand in case they arrive early. That way we can be waiting for them. We'll have several surveillance vans out on the street so we know when and how they're coming."

Feeling extremely satisfied, the team broke off to prepare for the night.

JJ waved her phone in the air and said, "I need to call Will. Tell him I'll be back late."

And because she still loved her privacy after all these years, they didn't find it strange in the slightest when she walked out the bullpen doors.

JJ made her way to the roof and called Will.

"Hey, Will," she greeted when he answered the phone.

"Hey, Cher. What's up?"

"Will, I'm sorry, but…"

Immediately recognizing the tone of voice, he asked, "You gotta jet off somewhere?"

"No, no. It's local. But we got a lead on this case, and it's time sensitive." She could hear Will sigh. "I'm sorry."

And because he understood, he said, "I know you are. Come home safely."

"I will. Is Henry still at Pete's?"

It was Thursday, which meant Henry had his weekly playdate at his friend Pete's. With JJ away often and Will working with Metro PD, the arrangement typically worked well for the family. On days like these, however, nothing was more comforting than the sound of her child's voice.

"Yeah, I'm going to go pick him up soon."

Though she had expected it, her spirits fell slightly at his response.

"Tell him I love him."

"Will do."

"I love you too."

"I love you three. See you tonight."

As he hung up, JJ smiled and whispered into the breeze, "I love you four."

Re-centering herself, she glanced back at the roof door to confirm her privacy and made another call.

"Hello?"

"Put me on speakerphone," JJ directed when she heard C's voice. Once she heard the beep indicating that her request had been fulfilled, she continued, "The BAU knows what tonight's target is."

C asked, "How?"

"We can discuss that later," JJ deflected. "Right now we need to figure out how to proceed."

"We can't wait it out, but we can't push up our timetable either," F said.

"She's right," G concurred. "Any later and we lose our window of opportunity. Any earlier and we run the risk of running into employees."

JJ'd known this would be the outcome before she made the call. While engaging the BAU was not optimal, the group's existence depended on secrecy, which meant keeping out of the public eye.

She raised a hand to her forehead to massage her temples.

"All right. We proceed as planned, but I want all possible contingency measures in place. M: schematics, codes, security. I need you to know every detail about everything in that place. I also need you to have plans A-Z on how to get around each locked door and guarded corridor. H: I need you onsite scouting the location. Agent Hotchner is setting up surveillance around the area, so they'll know when you're approaching. Find all the blindspots and figure out a way to exploit them. Check with K if you have to about scrambling their signals or inserting looped footage. F and G: intel needs to be checked and re-checked to make sure we've got all the details and that this is the only way. And C: as always, strategy's yours. Get everyone in and out of there alive and in one piece."

She heard a series of affirmative responses.

"You're going to have to confront them. Last time we set up the pretense of being an international team," JJ reminded them. "Continue that. With the exception of C, if – and I stress _IF _– you speak, stay away from your American accents."

"Don't worry. We'll be ready," C said confidently before hanging up.

JJ looked out upon the expanse below and tried to take deep, calming breaths.

It was going to be a long night.

… …

"Agent Hotchner," C called out as the team entered the building. "Oh, Agent Hooootchner! Come out, come out, wherever you are."

Upon hearing C's voice, the team exchanged looks of consternation. Despite all the surveillance they'd set up around the area, they hadn't gotten one heads up about the unsubs' approach.

The BAU and SWAT teams emerged from behind the surrounding hallways to find that the unsubs had strategically placed themselves around the lobby.

"How did you know we'd be here?" Hotch asked.

C shrugged nonchalantly and said, "The same way I knew who you were the first time we encountered each other."

Hotch frowned at the uninformative answer.

Rossi on the other hand came to a realization. "You have a mole."

"Not the way I would have phrased it, but essentially yes." JJ was in the midst of mentally cursing C for confirming such vital information when he added, "Technology has a way of being very handy."

"Counter-surveillance?" Hotch asked.

"Now, now, Agent Hotchner," C said deprecatingly. "Where would a girl be without her secrets?"

"You're not a girl," Reid stated unnecessarily.

In the background, M shifted. JJ could tell it was out of amusement, but several SWAT officers – on edge from their previous encounter with this group of unsubs – tensed at her movement.

In response, the unsubs tensed as well.

Noticing the increasingly uneasy atmosphere, Hotch said, "Let's all try to relax."

"You first," C retorted.

To no one's surprise, the tenseness persisted.

G repositioned to alleviate the pressure-induced stiffness in his shoulders, his gun shifting with his movement.

It was followed by someone's instinctive twitch of the trigger finger.

Beside G, F fell with a thud, and suddenly bullets were flying everywhere.

"Stop!" Hotch yelled. "Cease fire!"

His shouts were soon joined by those of the rest of the BAU, who moved to physically stop whichever SWAT members were firing around them.

Finally the gunfire died down.

JJ quickly surveilled the scene and was relieved to find that no one else had been hurt. Well, sort of. While the rest of her teams had gone unscathed, a few SWAT members had taken bullets to their vests.

"What the hell was that, Hotchner?" C shouted angrily from his position behind the welcome desk. "Do I need to inform you of every twitch, blink, and breath we're going to make? Or were you planning on shooting regardless?"

"It was an accident. It never should've happened," Hotch called out, trying to appease him.

"No, it shouldn't have."

C mulled over the situation.

F was bleeding somewhere behind him, and he needed to figure a way out of this mess. JJ had asked for all possible contingency measures, and he hadn't really considered being in such a dismal position. Talk about overconfidence coming back to bite him in the butt… or rather F's leg.

Whatever. It didn't matter now.

"What's it going to take for you to let us walk out of here?"

"Sorry. No can do," Hotch replied.

"What was the point of asking anyway?" H asked, his voice laced with a Kiwi accent. He was positioned over F, one hand pressing on her wound. "As if we could trust them."

"You're questioning _our _trustworthiness?" McFeely said indignantly. "You're the bad guys here."

C scoffed, "Don't forget who fired the first shot."

"Let's face it: there's no other way this is going to end," McFeely defended.

Growing more and more frustrated, C snarled, "Oh? Then what did you hope to accomplish with that pathetic excuse of a –"

McFeely's face lit up with a brilliant shade of red. "Watch who you're calling pathetic."

Once again, Hotch tried to diffuse the situation. "Look, we didn't intend –"

"Oh, come off it, Hotchner," McFeely cut him off. "They got what was coming to them."

With an exaggerated roll of the eyes, C sneered, "So you're an ass to everyone. That's nice to know."

And with that, the heated conversation between McFeely and C dissolved into a shouting match. Hotch tried to intervene, but the ever-increasing volume and hot tempers made it impossible to get a word in edgewise.

JJ kept trying to catch C's eye to calm him, but he was pissed, and there was no stopping him now.

All around, everyone began re-raising their weapons.

With the situation deteriorating rapidly, JJ acted quickly. She grabbed the nearest SWAT member, fired a warning shot at the ceiling, and pointed her gun to his neck.

"Drop your weapons."

… …

_Thanks for reading!_


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: In response to some of the questions that I've gotten in reviews, everything (JJ's evolution, the creation of the team, its goals, etc) will be revealed… eventually…

Complimentary reviews attached to the words "update soon" means new update less than a week after the last (thanks for the motivation).

* * *

><p>"JJ!" "JJ, what?" confused voices rang out around her.<p>

"Drop your weapons," JJ reiterated to the BAU and SWAT teams.

Suddenly amused more than anything else, C quipped, "Well that wasn't part of the plan."

In no mood for games, JJ snapped, "Neither was one of us getting shot."

"Touché," C said, appropriately chagrined. Then to the others, "I'd drop the weapons if I were you."

"Or what?" Hotch turned to JJ and indicated her hostage. "You'll shoot him? I very much doubt it."

Despite whatever changes JJ had undergone in her time away from the BAU, Hotch was certain she hadn't turned into a cold-blooded killer.

And it was apparent that no one else believed it either.

JJ was on thin ice. She was bluffing, and she knew everyone knew it.

Silently thanking whatever gods were out there for her insanely good aim, she quickly shot a nearby SWAT member's gun, which then exploded in his hands, and moved her gun back to her hostage's neck. The explosion was extremely small and non-fatal but proved she wasn't messing around.

"You don't want to know what I'll do, Hotch," JJ said with much more confidence than she actually felt. "Drop your weapons and kick them forward."

She edged her way over to her team, hostage in tow.

"How many times do I need to say it? Drop your weapons," she repeated when a few remaining SWAT members stubbornly retained their weapons. As she neared C, she shoved her hostage towards him and headed for F.

C wasted no time in grabbing him roughly and dropping him to the ground. Keeping his gun trained on the hostage, he gestured for G and M to collect the surrendered weapons.

"Grab their cell phones too. And don't forget to check for hidden weapons," JJ threw over her shoulder as she knelt beside F and opposite H. "Agent Hotchner has an ankle holster."

As she took one of F's clammy hands in both of her own, she evaluated the condition of the wound. Through-and-through, so no bullet in there to cause problems. But that also meant it was quite the bleeder. They had to get her out of here soon.

Noticing the concern in her eyes, F squeezed JJ's hands. "Hey. I'm ok, darling."

JJ couldn't help but smile. Even with a bullet hole in her leg, F was still focused on the job and had spoken with an English accent that matched the one JJ herself had used in the team's first encounter with the BAU.

She reached down and affectionately adjusted a stray lock of F's hair.

"No, you're not."

"I will be," F said with her best attempt at a reassuring smile.

Standing, JJ turned to C. "Go. Take one of their SUVs – H, you know where they're located – and get her to Y. He should be on stand by. Have him patch her up."

One SWAT member muttered stubbornly, "We're not giving up our keys."

"You don't need keys to start a car," M scoffed in an easily generated Chinese accent. There were perks to having grown up in Chinatown, but of course the law enforcement teams wouldn't know that.

"We haven't completed the objective," C reminded JJ.

She looked over at F and said resolutely, "I'll complete it. Go."

"Then what? What're you going to do?"

"I'll head to the coal shaft. I need to talk to the miner, figure out what to do next."

"I'll come with you."

"No, go with her. I can't risk having you identified as well. We," JJ stopped and amended her statement. "_She_ doesn't have time for us to debate this. Go!"

"The rest of you go," C commanded. "I'll stay with Jareau and finish the objective."

JJ and C exchanged death glares.

The rest of the team watched the two, torn between the two conflicting commands. They ended up complying with C's orders. Ironically it was JJ's words that compelled them to do so: they really didn't have time to linger.

"M," JJ called one of them back. "Don't forget to disable the GPS tracker, change the license plates, and whatever else you need to not get caught."

She nodded and said, "They wouldn't find us in their own backyard."

JJ shot C a dirty look as the other helped F out of the building. Why did he have to be so stubborn?

When only C and JJ remained, Hotch asked, "JJ, why are you doing this?"

"Isn't it obvious, Hotch? One of my people was shot," JJ replied, knowing that she didn't really answer his question.

He immediately called her out on it. "That's not what I meant, and you know it."

"I'm preventing a blood bath."

"Still not what I meant."

"Hotch."

"JJ."

"Aaron."

"Jennifer."

They stared at each other in a battle of the wills.

Hotch's eyes clearly said, "I know there's something bigger at play. There has to be. I know you. Let me help."

And JJ's responded, "I can't. I'm sorry."

Their unspoken conversation continued in that vein, each trying to get the other to understand their own points of view.

The BAU, being accustomed to JJ and Hotch's unique relationship, simply watched the silent exchange, and the SWAT team followed their lead.

C, on the other hand, grew impatient.

"Jareau."

"It's a long story," she said apologetically.

"We have time now," Hotch insisted.

"Complete the mission, Jareau," C said before JJ could respond. "I'll watch over them."

"You don't trust me with them?" JJ asked, turning to face him.

Instead of answering, he merely said, "Go."

JJ's eyes flitted between C and the hostages.

She trusted C not to do anything stupid. F was on her way to being taken care of, and he had no reason to harm the hostages in any way. And even if he did, he wouldn't. She was sure of that.

But a small part of JJ still felt like she needed to keep an eye on the BAU, to look after them.

"All right," she said finally and slipped out of sight.

C began to pace.

It wasn't that he didn't trust JJ. No, he trusted her implicitly. It was more a matter of objectivity and practicality.

The BAU knew of JJ as a friend. He doubted they'd genuinely believe she'd pistol-whip or shoot one of them if they got out of hand. She could be a badass – there was no doubt about that – but her being in any way violent or harsh towards the team she'd called a family for so long was a different story entirely.

On the other hand, he was a complete unknown, giving him the upper hand. They couldn't possibly know what to expect from him.

His musings were interrupted by Hotch who echoed JJ's earlier question, "You don't trust her with us?"

C stilled and said, "No profiling, Agent Hotchner."

The last thing he needed was for the profilers to figure him or the rest of their operation out. After all that had been what JJ worried about when he decided to stay with her.

"Did you blackmail her into this or something?" Morgan asked. At one of C's glares, he added, "Not profiling. Just asking."

Exasperated, C retorted with a question of his own, "Does she look like she's here unwillingly?"

"You said 'no profiling'," Rossi responded with a smirk, despite knowing the question was rhetorical.

Reid, on the other hand, aimed for clarification. "Unless… wait… what exactly is your definition of profiling? Because technically given certain specifications of any particular definition, even the smallest little observances count as profiling, and we naturally do them all the time."

"And were you referring only to Hotch?" Prentiss added.

C cursed his luck. Of all the possibilities, why did he have to end up with a bunch of profiling smartasses for hostages?

"No more questions," he ground out tersely and resumed pacing.

They miraculously managed to maintain silence until JJ returned several minutes later.

"It's done."

"Good. Let's get out of here," C said quickly, eager to leave. He hauled their first hostage to his feet. "All right, buddy, to the car we go."

Then to the other hostages, "Give us five minutes to get out of your hair. That's all we need. You don't comply, and I do something unpleasant to him."

JJ tried to think of the right thing to say, but words were evading her. She did an unintentional but brilliant impersonation of a goldfish before settling on a simple "I'm sorry" and following C out the door.

They made their way to the SUV JJ arrived in. C handed their hostage over to JJ and proceeded to hot-wire the car.

After he got the engine started, he gestured for their hostage to take the wheel and sidled into the backseat while JJ rode shotgun.

"Where to?" their new chauffer asked.

JJ leaned back into the car seat and shrugged. "Wherever."

Confused, he glanced over at her and then at the rearview mirror to check with the man in the backseat. He too seemed unconcerned about their destination.

"Wherever?" he echoed for confirmation.

"Yeah," JJ said. "Just drive."

As their hostage began to drive, JJ put her gun away. Their new chauffer seemed too nervous to try anything stupid, and if he did, C was more than ready to set him straight.

"Sorry about that," she said as she began to relax and for the first time actually observed the man she had taken hostage. He was younger than she expected, which explained the strangely timid behavior uncharacteristic of most SWAT members.

She racked her brain for his name.

"It's Gannon, right?" JJ asked kindly. "Neil Gannon?"

"Yes, ma'am."

JJ laughed. "Gannon, the moment a federal agent breaks the law and takes you hostage, you stop calling her 'ma'am'."

"Yes, ma'am," Gannon said instinctively. It seemed to him that being taken hostage was in fact the time to start addressing one as "ma'am" if he didn't do so already. At JJ's raised eyebrow, he tried amending his response. "Yes… Ok."

After a few minutes of checking to make sure they weren't being tailed, JJ asked, "Gannon, where exactly are you heading?"

"I… umm… I don't know," he responded nervously.

"Why don't we head to wherever you were going to go after the raid?" JJ said gently. "You can get off there, and then we'll take the SUV and head to wherever we're going."

"Umm…" Gannon hesitated. "That would be FBI Academy in Quantico."

"That's ok," JJ replied calmly.

Gannon glanced at the rearview mirror to once again check for the man's reaction. "Are you sure?"

"Think about it. That's the last place they'd expect me to show up."

He had to concede to that point, so he simply nodded and began to navigate his way back towards Quantico.

"And, Gannon, you can stop checking the mirror," JJ added. "Just assume everything I say is the way it'll be."

Despite what he'd just been told, his eyes flashed towards the mirror again and saw the man give a nod of confirmation.

JJ saw the look and smirked but said nothing about it, instead changing the subject to a much more mundane topic.

"So, Gannon, are you a fan of the Redskins? I won't kill you if you say 'no.'"

* * *

><p><em>Thanks for reading!<em>


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: I was worried I was moving this story along too fast, but I see from the reviews (and thank you very, very much for them) that I may have been wrong. That being said, no answers yet. *evil grin followed by worried face* Please don't hate me.

There's also no JJ in this chapter. Inasmuch as this is a JJ-centric fic, it's also a team-centric fic. So here are the team's reactions that you've been waiting for. *un-evil grin*

* * *

><p>"Can Stockholm Syndrome set in that quickly?" the SWAT team leader asked.<p>

"It's not Stockholm!" Gannon protested. "There really was nothing evil about her. We had a nice conversation about football and family, and then she dropped me off here."

McFeely scoffed in disbelief.

"She also wanted me to tell you guys that she's sorry."

McFeely scoffed again. "Like anyone belie–"

"Thank you, Gannon," Hotch interrupted McFeely. "You can go now."

"See, I knew there was something off about her," Morgan said once Gannon and McFeely left.

"You didn't think she was an unsub," Reid responded snidely.

"Neither did any of you," Morgan shot back.

"I did," Prentiss said with a hint of smugness.

"You were joking," Reid refuted.

"That's enough," Hotch quieted them down.

A voice floated in through the doorway. "Please tell me I'm dreaming."

The profilers turned to see Garcia, hair askew and eyes sleepy.

"Please tell me that I'm still asleep in my office waiting for you guys to come back and that I _did not_ get a wake up call telling me that JJ is an unsub."

When she didn't get the affirmative response she was hoping for, she said, "Your silence is not encouraging."

Rossi tried to get the team to focus on the task at hand. "What do we know about JJ?"

The rest of the team members exchanged glances.

"She played varsity soccer in high school and got into Pittsburgh University on a soccer scholarship," Morgan started them off.

Rossi nodded and added, "Then she somehow ended up at Georgetown. What else?"

"We know trivial things like as a child she collected butterflies and was afraid of the woods and that she's a fan of the Redskins," Reid listed off random facts.

"She can kick anyone's ass at darts," Morgan threw in.

Rossi waved off the last few statements. "Anything substantial? Anything that tells us _who _she is? We know she's motivated and efficient, but…"

"She's a wonderful, caring angelfish," Garcia cut in. The rest of the team looked at her. "What? It's true, it's who she is, and none of you can deny it."

"Apparently, we may have reason to," Morgan said. "Do we really not know anything else about her? Parents? Siblings?"

Though reluctant to help, Garcia said, "She's mentioned a brother."

Finally Hotch, who had remained quiet thus far, spoke, "Her sister committed suicide when JJ was eleven."

His statement was met by a collective "WHAT?"

"I don't know details," Hotch said shaking his head. "And I've never asked for them."

"All right, that makes sense. Most unsubs –"

Garcia interrupted Morgan, "Jayje is _not_ an unsub."

"She's right," Reid agreed. "Technically, JJ's an identified subject, so… an idsub."

"That is NOT what I meant."

Morgan tried to bring her around. "Baby Girl…"

"She must've had a good reason," Garcia asserted stubbornly.

"Garcia," Rossi said stepping between her and Morgan. "We have to think objectively."

"No, we don't. I know who JJ is. And when the rest of you remember, I'll be in my office."

They watched Garcia storm out, some of them wishing that they could share her faith.

Reid turned to Emily. "You haven't said much. You don't agree either?"

With a half-hearted shrug, she replied, "I don't know if I'm in a position to judge any of this."

"Prentiss, this isn't some CIA operation," Morgan said.

"That we know of," Emily countered. "None of you have any idea what she had to do with the Pentagon."

"Do you?" Rossi asked.

"Uhhhh," she hedged. "Not much? But enough to know that her work was international and highly classified."

Rossi caught Hotch's eye. "Aaron, you haven't said much either."

Immediately he replied, "Like Garcia and Prentiss, I think there has to be something else at play. Reid, what does your judgment say?"

Reid mulled over his thoughts and took the time to organize them before speaking. "JJ's always been good and kind, but I also remember the woman who lied to me for ten weeks."

Feeling slightly awkward, Emily shifted her bangs to the side.

"I'm not being bitter," Reid continued. "But she is different now. When I spoke to her about it, she hinted at some sort of stressor that occurred during the previous year."

With a nod, Rossi added, "And she has mentioned getting her hands dirty."

Morgan let loose a humorless laugh. "JJ's never been that good at lying, she ends up at the Pentagon, and all of a sudden we can't figure her out."

Hotch scoffed.

Taken slightly aback by Hotch's reaction, Morgan felt the need to justify his statement. "None of us were surprised when JJ finally kissed Will in front of us."

"Would you care to tell us why JJ's afraid of the woods?" Hotch countered.

Feeling more than slightly embarrassed, Morgan asked, "How'd you know about that?"

"Reid told me," Hotch answered sarcastically.

Eyes widening, Reid exclaimed, "I did not!"

"What's the story?" Prentiss asked, as she and Rossi eyed the trio with curiosity.

"Nevermind," Hotch said with a shake of the head. He needed to get them back on track. "It's almost 2 AM. Let's all get some rest, and then we'll go talk to Will. I want to get a hold of him before he drops Henry off at preschool."

* * *

><p>A mere five hours later, the BAU made their way to JJ's house with droopy eyelids, frequent yawns, and dark eye shadows.<p>

Except for Reid.

Having fueled up with his – what Morgan called – cup of sugar with a dash of coffee, the team's resident genius was as awake and chipper as ever much to the annoyance of those around him.

"Will," Hotch greeted as the man in question opened the front door.

"Morning, everyone." Will took in their appearances and had to hold back a smile at the coffee cups in each of their hands. "JJ's not here, but is there something I can help you with?"

"Actually, she's why we're here," Morgan answered.

"We just want to ask you a few questions," Rossi added.

"Come on in."

As they were settling into the living room, Henry wandered in, syrup and blueberries smeared across his chin. "Daddy, I finish."

Grabbing a wet wipe, Will moved to wipe Henry's face and hands, but upon seeing his mother's friends, Henry went instead to the couch where Hotch and Reid had settled.

He was about to place his sticky hands on the couch and pull himself up when Hotch quickly caught them. He lifted Henry onto his lap and gestured for Will to hand him the wet wipe.

As Hotch began to wipe his hands and face, Henry said hi to everyone and charmed them with his little grin. He then wriggled his way into Reid's lap once Hotch had finished and proceeded to engage his godfather in an animated conversation.

"Hey, little man," Will got his son's attention. "Why don't you go play with your godfather in your room?"

"Okay!" Henry promptly dragged Reid from the room.

"Sorry," Will said once the two had left. "Do you mind Reid not being here?"

"It's fine," Hotch reassured him. "Have you heard from JJ?"

"Yeah, she called this morning," Will stated

"How did she seem?" Emily asked.

"She seemed like JJ. What's going on?" Will finished with a pointed look towards the team.

Avoiding the question, Rossi asked, "What did she tell you?"

"Just that she wouldn't be by for a bit, it was a long story, and that she'd explain later." With a shrug, Will added, "I just assumed she got called away by the Pentagon or State Department again. I take it that's not the case?"

"Not by a long shot," Morgan replied.

At Will's apprehensive expression, the team informed him of the previous night's events.

He remained silent for a bit and let everything soak in before saying, "That doesn't sound like her."

Rossi asked, "So you had no idea?"

"None whatsoever," Will confirmed.

"What about her behavior at home?" Hotch asked. "Were there any distinctive changes in her personality over the past year?"

"Not really, no. Family always comes first, so she was pretty much the same. Sometimes after we put Henry to bed, she'd get really quiet, but I just assumed that was a result of her new work," Will said, running a hand through his hair.

"Same with us," Emily commiserated.

They were interrupted by an excited Henry followed by an embarrassed Reid.

"Daddy," Henry called out, while bolting into the room.

"Sorry," Reid apologized quickly to the BAU team as Henry prattled on and told Will about all the magic tricks "Unca Spencey" could do. "He managed to get away from me."

"S'all right," Will said, lifting Henry into his lap. "He's a slippery little fella, takes after his mama."

An awkward silence fell. Even Henry – who sensed that something was amiss – remained quiet.

"Sorry, not the right time for that."

"It's ok," Emily reassured Will.

"Reid, can you take Henry back to his room and keep him there this time?" Hotch said, emphasizing the latter point.

Morgan stood and ruffled Reid's hair. "I'll help the Boy Genius."

After the trio left, Will Hotch, Rossi, and Emily resumed their discussion on JJ, speaking about how none of them saw it coming and – if there was something else going on – what it could possibly be.

Their conversation wound down as Will noted that it was nearly time to drop Henry off at school. Emily retrieved the three boys, who were giggling like mad about something they wouldn't tell her about.

"If JJ contacts you again, let us know," Hotch said holding out his hand.

Will shook it and told Henry, "Say goodbye to Mama's friends."

"Bye-bye," Henry bid them farewell in his little whispery voice.

After they left JJ's house, Hotch said, "I want surveillance set up here. I can't see JJ disappearing without checking in on her family."

"What if she's already been here and gone?" Morgan asked.

"You think Will lied to us?" It didn't seem implausible, but Emily hoped for Will's sake that it wasn't true.

"It doesn't matter," Hotch cut in. "As long as they're here, JJ'll keep checking on them. Someway. Somehow."

"Whatever you say, Unca Hotchy," Morgan said teasingly.

"Hey," Hotch said sternly as he got into the SUV. "I happen to like that nickname. All right, Unca Dewek?"

* * *

><p>When the team arrived back at the federal building, they were met with a surprise.<p>

The two SUVs that JJ and the unsubs had taken were in the parking garage. Under a windshield wiper of one of the SUVs was a note in JJ's handwriting.

_Just returning what we borrowed._

_One of them got a little bloody, so I had the seats reupholstered for you._

_Sorry._

"Look at that," Emily gestured at the note. "I'm beginning to think 'sorry' is JJ's favorite word."

"I'm more interested in how they got here," Morgan said looking around.

Peering through a window, Rossi observed, "It's the seat job that impresses me. Considering the time frame, that is pretty good quality."

"Really, Dave?" Hotch eyed Rossi skeptically. "That's what you choose to focus on?"

"I too can be full of surprises," Rossi quipped.

Hotch shook his head then turned his attention to Reid. "Can you do a handwriting analysis?"

Like Reid, he was very well aware that JJ's handwriting varied with her mood, and while it looked as though she had been calm while writing it, he wanted to be sure.

"Reid?" Hotch prompted when he didn't respond.

"The SUVs got me thinking about something." And sure enough, Reid's face was set on his pensive expression. "H, M, Y and a 'miner'."

"What?"

"When we were at Ironlock Dynamics, JJ referred to two of them as H and M. She also mentioned a Y and a 'miner'. We knew there were more than five of them, but alphabet designations seem to indicate a possible 26, 27 if you include the 'miner' or even 28 if JJ hasn't been assigned a letter."

Prentiss snickered, "She's probably J."

"No. Remember Pearl Crescent," Rossi said. "That probably really is her."

Morgan rubbed the back of his head in thought. "Then we're thinking 28."

Reid nodded. "Unless the letters are initials for their names, but there tends to be too much redundancy in that, so I think it's a distinct possibility."

"All right," Hotch said, gesturing for them to head inside. "I'll have CSU technician Sharp and her team look over the SUVs for evidence and have Garcia look over the security footage to see how they got here. In the meantime, given what we know now, we can reevaluate the incident reports that we initially thought didn't fit. Maybe they'll shed some light on all this."

* * *

><p>A second surprise was waiting for them on the sixth floor.<p>

Walking into the BAU bullpen, they all noticed the silhouette of someone standing in the round table room. Exchanging curious looks, they made their way up the stairs.

"Agents, I'm Major Phillip Schore from Department of Homeland Security," the mystery man introduced himself as they entered.

With an appraising look, Hotch asked, "What can we do for you, Major?"

"I'm here to inform you that my team and I will be taking over the case into and pursuit of Jennifer Jareau."

"Say again?" Morgan said immediately.

The Major asked, "Did you really think we would allow you to be the ones to pursue her?"

"We know her better than anyone," Reid responded.

"Exactly. You're all compromised."

"No," Morgan contradicted. "That makes us more prepared."

"By that logic, it makes her more prepared as well."

Despite themselves, they had to admit that the Major was right. As Morgan had said during the Doyle case, though of course he was talking about Emily at the time, she knew all of their tricks. They didn't necessarily know all of hers.

And at the moment, Morgan thought to himself, _"What is with the women on this team?" _

Rossi asked, "Well what makes you qualified?"

"I don't like her," Major Schore said simply.

"That just impairs your judgment," Hotch frowned.

He was still convinced that JJ had a very damn good reason for doing what she did. Did it make him naïve? Perhaps, but even if there was the slightest chance she was 'innocent', he didn't want someone with a vendetta gunning for her. Previous experiences had been more than enough to show just how badly that could turn out.

"No," Major Schore retorted. "It makes me motivated."

"Why you?" Prentiss asked.

"Huh?" He was pretty sure they just covered this point.

"Why is the DHS looking for JJ?" she clarified.

"Seriously?" Major Schore shot her an incredulous look. "The woman just held you hostage, and you're asking me why we're looking for her?"

Prentiss rolled her eyes at his apparent denseness. "No, I'm asking you why the DHS specifically is looking for her. Why not another FBI team or some sort of joint taskforce?"

"That's simple. She has revealed herself to be involved with this international group of criminals. By our book, that makes her a homegrown terrorist. Add to that her clearance levels, and it makes all the powers that be very nervous."

Instead of giving them the time to reply, he added, "Look, this was just a courtesy visit to let you know. You can't change it, and don't get in my way."

With that, the Major exited the round table room with a second glance.

"Maybe it's for the best," Hotch sighed.

"How can you say that?" Prentiss asked incredulously.

"Think about what we'd do if we did apprehend her. Would we really bring her in? We all swore an oath to uphold the Constitution, but the Department of Homeland Security is looking for her. If she's found that means Gitmo or God knows what. Would we be willing to let that happen?"

"Exactly," Emily said, wholly aware of what happened to detained terrorists. "It would be better if we found her."

"Maybe it's better if no one finds her," Hotch muttered under his breath.

Morgan who was standing next to him couldn't believe his ears. "What?"

"Nothing. Morgan, let Garcia know we're off this case. Let's all take an early day, start the weekend early. I think we deserve it, and Monday we'll resume business as usual."

Slowly and reluctantly they began to trickle out.

"You're giving up that easily?" Rossi asked after the others left.

While the BAU members all had a special relationship with one another, Aaron and JJ had a particularly special bond. Rossi had noticed it the day he met her. If Aaron wouldn't back off Garcia's shooter case that easily (albeit these were slightly different circumstances), then there was no way Rossi believed Aaron would do so when it came to JJ.

With a look of determination, Hotch replied, "I have one card left to play."

* * *

><p>"Agent Hotchner," the Secretary of State greeted as her aide ushered him into her office. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"<p>

"I need to know what's going on," Hotch said briskly, knowing how precious the Secretary's time was. He was pretty sure he wouldn't have much time with her.

Having been held up in meetings the entire morning, she had no idea what he was talking about. "Excuse me?"

Pent up frustration that had been growing throughout the day prevented Hotch from keeping his words and tone respectful. "What the hell did you have JJ mixed up in?"

"Watch how you speak to me," she responded sternly. Features softening, she asked, "What exactly is going on with Jennifer?"

He told her about the encounter at Ironlock Dynamics, about JJ and the unexpected turn of events, about the DHS Major's announcement that they would be pursuing her as a terrorist.

"That is not… That…" the Secretary stammered in response. "I would never have Jennifer do that."

"Then that wasn't for you, ma'am?"

Scandalized expression fully spread across her face, the Secretary asked, "What are you accusing me of?"

"I'm not," Hotch said quickly. "The first time we ran into the team, JJ wasn't with us. When our investigation involved Senator Clarke, he mentioned some dirt he had on her, and you swooped in to protect her. I thought maybe when you called her away…"

"I assure you, Agent Hotchner, what I've had her do on those occasions were very, very legitimate."

"There has to be a reason for this. A good one. I know her. You know her. I just thought…" Hotch trailed off before finishing in a softer, slightly desperate voice. "Maybe you could help her?"

The Secretary's face fell.

"I can't help her now. I wish I could. I am sorry, Agent Hotchner."

* * *

><p><em>Thanks for reading!<em>

A/N número dos: More in-depth team reactions to come next chapter when they actually come face-to-face with JJ. Just trying to give you all something to look forward to. :)


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: Sorry for the longer update wait. I got sucked into an Alex Cabot (_LO:SVU_) vortex. Also, the actual author's note is at the end this time.

Carry on.

* * *

><p>Hotch arrived at home with plenty of time to spare before picking Jack up from school. He called Jessica to let her know he could spend the day with Jack and then busied himself around the house with chores.<p>

While he could've thought about JJ and the mess of a situation she had gotten into, he opted for a _White Album _soundtrack. If he was going to spending the day with Jack, he certainly wasn't going to go into it with a muddied mindset.

He picked Jack up from school a few hours later and spent a relatively enjoyable afternoon with him. They dropped by the park, had ice cream, and considered the possibility of a movie before deciding to head home. Jack had a big soccer game the next day, and Hotch didn't want to keep him out too late.

If Jack noticed that his father was a little slower with a smile than usual, he didn't mention it. Conversation during and after dinner revolved around the big game and how excited Jack was for it. Though his father was no longer his coach (Hotch thought to himself that though the idea was nice perhaps he should've recognized the futility of it before he started), Jack loved having his father cheer him from the stands all the same.

At bedtime, Jack insisted he was too wound up to sleep, but Hotch tucked him in anyway and told him to at least give it his best shot.

With Jack in bed, Hotch poured himself a glass of scotch, settled onto the couch, and finally allowed himself to think the previous night's and morning's events through.

JJ had said that it was a long story, which could mean any number of things, but Hotch took it to mean that he was right: there was a bigger picture.

But what was it?

Prentiss had mentioned JJ's non-BAU work to be international. The team she was working with was international.

Clue number 1.

But that posed a problem in and of itself. If she met them through her classified work, there was pretty much no chance he'd get the clearance to find out, especially with Homeland Security looking into it.

Speaking of the government, Hotch couldn't convince himself to believe the Secretary of State wasn't somehow involved. While she had seemed genuinely surprised by his story, her wording was oddly specific: "on those occasions." But the Secretary also seemed sincerely worried about JJ and her inability to help her. Then again he supposed it was her job to project whatever she wanted. She was a politician after all.

Clue number 2?

His musings were interrupted by the telephone.

Feeling rather reluctant to talk to anyone, he pressed the 'end' button so its ringing wouldn't disturb Jack and poured himself another glass of scotch.

It rang again.

And because it was his home phone (work calls would go to his cell), he silenced it again.

When it began to ring for a third time, he considered unplugging the damn thing. However, the incessant nature of the calls seemed urgent, so he finally answered.

"Hello?" Hotch barked into the phone.

"You sober enough to talk, or did you drink too much scotch?"

There was no doubt whom the voice belonged to.

"JJ."

"Yeah."

Hotch was torn between relief that she'd reached out to him and annoyance that they were in this mess in the first place. "What do you want?" he asked briskly.

"I just want to talk," JJ said with her best I-come-in-peace voice.

"So talk then."

With scotch running through his veins and his emotions running amok, Hotch couldn't bring himself to curb his brusque responses.

"I need you to know that you're right."

"Right about what?"

"There is something going on. I just… I can't tell you yet."

Hotch latched on to the word 'yet'. "But you will?"

There was a short silence before JJ answered, "Yes."

And then – because JJ seemed full of surprises lately – he asked, "Am I really supposed to believe you?"

"You always have before. Please don't stop now."

Hotch sighed, and because he heard a hint of pleading in her tone, he softened his voice.

"I asked the Secretary of State. She said she can't help you."

"I know."

"You know I went to see her?"

"I know she can't help me."

JJ's voice sounded neither worried nor resigned. It was strangely factual, as though her statement was perfectly normal, something akin to the description of a soccer field.

Hotch found it incredibly frustrating.

"And DHS? They're looking for you."

"I know. It shouldn't be a problem."

Hotch frowned at the unexpected answer.

"JJ –"

"I'm sorry about all this," JJ cut in. "I have to go, but just know that I'm sorry and that one day it'll all make sense."

"JJ –"

"I really do have to go. Good-bye, Hotch."

As she ended the call, he slowly put his phone down and stared blankly ahead lost in thought. He was startled to hear Jack's voice behind him.

"Was that Aunt JJ, Daddy?"

"Yeah, buddy. It was."

"Is she going to be at my soccer game tomorrow?"

"No." Hotch knelt down on his knees to look into Jack's hopeful eyes. "And we won't be seeing Aunt JJ for a while."

He hated disappointing his son, but his son needed to know sooner or later, and he figured sooner was better.

"Why not?"

Hotch considered what to tell him before settling on, "She's working a case and has to disappear for a little bit."

"Like Aunt Emily?"

"Something like that," Hotch answered obliquely and then led the boy back to bed.

* * *

><p>Seeing Beth and his father talking to Greg's parents, Jack headed for the snack table. The game was everything he'd hoped it be, and now that it was over, it was the time for some celebratory cookies.<p>

"Hey, Jack."

Jack spun around to see his Aunt JJ.

"You came!" Jack launched himself at her. "Daddy said you wouldn't come, but I knew you would cause you promised."

"I did, didn't I?" JJ hugged him tightly.

"Did you see my goal?" Jack asked excitedly.

"I did! You were very good." Before Jack could start gushing about it, JJ began, "Jack, did your Daddy tell you that I won't be able to see you for a while?"

Jack's excitement level dropped considerably. "Yeah. He said you were working a case."

"That's right," JJ said, glad that Hotch hadn't vilified her to his son. "I won't be around for a while, but I want you to remember that I will be thinking about you, ok?"

When Jack nodded somberly, she continued, "I don't want you to be sad about it because you'll still get to play with Henry, and I'll come back. That's a promise."

A smile began to reform on Jack's lips. "You never break your promises."

"That's right." JJ saw Hotch approaching. "Buddy, I gotta go now. One more hug?"

She wrapped Jack in a big bear hug, and then with one last smile, she slipped away.

Hotch stopped as he reached his son. "Was that Aunt JJ?"

"Yup," Jack replied with a smile. "She never breaks her promises."

* * *

><p>"Hey, Reid. Thanks for doing this," Will said as he opened the door to his home and let the other man in.<p>

"No problem." Reid looked down when he felt someone attach to his legs. "Well hello there, Henry."

"Hi, Unca Spencey!" Henry chirped with a toothy grin.

"I'll see you later, little man," Will said with a kiss to Henry's cheek.

"Bye, Daddy." Henry waved as his father left for work. Then he turned to his godfather. "I wanna show you something."

Henry scampered off to find one of his toys, and Reid wandered into the living room.

"Hey, Spence."

Reid spun around to see JJ sitting comfortably at the dining table.

"JJ, what…?"

"Just came to see my boys."

"Will's not here."

"I know," JJ said with a small shrug. "I meant you."

He was about to protest that he wasn't one of her boys, but she had always been like a big sister to him, so he said instead, "You shouldn't be here."

"Because I'm a fugitive?" JJ smiled up at him sardonically. "If I remember correctly, a prerequisite of being a fugitive is doing what you're not supposed to."

"Why did you do it?"

There was no doubt what he was referring to.

"Ah… the million dollar question." JJ mulled it over.

Before she could respond, Reid asked, "Was it because of your stressor?"

"My stressor?" JJ's mind jumped from her sister's suicide to Hankel and his dogs to her year with the Pentagon.

"'It's still better to care,'" Reid quoted.

"Oh," JJ said shortly. "Oh, sort of… I guess it was a factor."

"What was it?"

"Spence, I couldn't tell you if I wanted to. It's classified."

Reid looked at her skeptically. "So it's ok to take people hostage but not to talk about classified information?"

"It's complicated."

"I'm a genius. Explain it to me."

She never had to, however, because Henry re-entered the room. "Unca Spencey, look."

He handed his toy to Reid and climbed onto his mother's lap, acting as though it wasn't strange in the slightest that his mother was here.

Reid curiously observed the mother/son dynamic before looking down at the toy in his hands.

It was a Stargate action figure of Samantha Carter.

"That's really cool, Henry."

Reid tried to hand the toy back to him, but Henry shook his head and said, "For you."

Reid glanced over Henry's head, looking to JJ for confirmation.

"He's been talking about the show with the big blue whoosh thingy, so I got this for him, but he insisted it should be for you because she's their team's resident genius. Like you."

"Thank you, Henry." Reid was touched by the young boy's generosity and kindness.

Henry made sure to capitalize on the presence of both his mother and godfather the entire day, roping them into playing various games.

While Reid had no problem with hide-and-seek and the like, he was utterly dismayed when Henry insisted on Twister.

But he managed to make it through the day intact, and he enjoyed it more than he was willing to admit. He toyed with the idea of bringing JJ in several times, but he didn't want to in front of Henry, and – if he were to be honest with himself – he didn't think he'd be able to since JJ could both outshoot him and kick his ass.

When Will arrived home, Henry bolted for the door as soon as he heard the key in the lock. Reid began to follow, but he stopped briefly to look back.

JJ was gone.

* * *

><p>"Sergio," Emily called out as she entered her apartment. "Sergio?"<p>

She exited the entrance hall to find Sergio comfortably secured in JJ's arms. Lounging lazily on the couch, JJ looked to be the poster child of relaxation.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was in the neighborhood, this side of the Atlantic, whatever," JJ responded flippantly, referencing the last time she'd unexpectedly shown up at Emily's apartment.

"JJ, this is not a joke."

JJ continued to stroke Sergio, who was purring contently. "Oh, I'm well aware."

"Did you bring booze this time?" Emily asked only partially sarcastic.

"I wasn't planning on a drunk night."

"That's unfortunate because I may need it." Emily put her things away before making her way to the other end of the couch and retrieved Sergio from JJ's arms. "DOD, State, CIA, or DHS?"

"Technically none of them," JJ hedged. Now that her arms were unoccupied, she was at a loss with what to do with them. She crossed her arms, but that felt slightly confrontational, so she untangled them and folded her hands on her lap.

Emily quirked an eyebrow. "Technically?"

"You know better than to ask questions."

"Strangely enough, that's a reassuring answer."

And it was. JJ's response was classic spook talk: comfortable territory for both women.

"Yeah, weird lives we lead."

"So, seriously this time, what are you doing here?"

"I needed to blow off some steam with someone who understood." Suddenly a grinch-like smile appeared on her face. "So what's going on with you and Rick?"

"We're… friends. Just friends."

"Uh huuuuhhhh," JJ drew the word out. "Like how Will and I were just friends?"

"JJ…" Emily said with her best warning tone.

"Before we had a kid…"

"JJ…" She was starting to redden.

"… and got married."

Emily had reached tomato status. "JJ!"

"Just teasing," JJ said in her best innocent voice, which was dripping with insincerity. "I think I deserve the right to it after the hell you put me through when I started dating Will."

Emily grinned. "You mean when you knew Will 'professionally'?"

It was JJ's turn to blush. "Don't remind me."

"Anyway, Rick and I are just friends. It's nice to have someone to socialize with that I don't see – what feels like – every second of every day and also understands my crazy schedule for when I'm suddenly unavailable."

"Mm-hmm," JJ nodded obnoxiously, indicating that she would continue her teasing regardless of if she believed the brunette or not.

Emily threw a couch cushion at the blonde.

JJ was about to throw it back, but the other woman lifted Sergio in front of her as a protective shield. JJ smirked and flung the cushion like a Frisbee right under Sergio's dangling hind legs.

When JJ connected with a direct hit to Emily's abdomen, the brunette set Sergio down and tossed the pillow back at the blonde in one swift, fluid motion.

Sergio stared disapprovingly as Emily picked up a second cushion and the two women began a full-fledged pillow fight.

They were careful not to break anything and not to shriek too loudly (they didn't want neighbors knocking at the door), and eventually, they ended it, each falling onto the couch and giggling softly.

Sergio shot them another disapproving look before slinking off to another room.

"Want to spend the night?" Emily asked, glancing over at the blonde.

JJ shook her head. "I should go."

"Yeah," Emily responded reluctantly. "I guess you should."

Neither made any effort to move.

"Thanks for this," JJ said. "I needed it."

"Anytime."

Finally, JJ stood to leave.

"I mean it," Emily called out as JJ reached the door. "Anytime."

The blonde stilled, nodded her thanks, and walked out the door.

* * *

><p>"Thank you for all your hard work, everyone," Rossi said as he finally left his book reading.<p>

He walked to his car lost in thought about the impact his books had and would make. Of course one had directly intersected with his life and in a big way: Jennifer Jareau.

He turned a corner.

"Nice reading." _Speak of the devil_, he thought to himself. There, leaning against the wall, stood the very topic of his thoughts. She grinned at him. "Takes me back."

Rossi took one glance at her and continued on to his rental car, glad for once that he'd dispensed with the limo and entourage. It had, after all, begotten this opportunity for JJ to approach him. "Once, I would have considered that a point of pride."

JJ fell in-step with him. "Not anymore?"

"Now I'm not so sure."

"And if you were to profile me? Does my profile say 'unsub' or 'traitor'?"

They arrived at Rossi's car.

He opened the door but, instead of getting in, eyed her carefully. "No, and I trust my profile."

"You sure it's not your pride?" JJ teased. "That you don't want to believe the great David Rossi could be hoodwinked by a small-town girl like me?"

"Maybe a little," Rossi joked back good-naturedly.

JJ smirked as if to say "Well there you go" and laid a hand on his shoulder as she walked past him.

"Before…" JJ turned to face him, and Rossi continued, "When you did the Habaza interrogation, we talked about change. Just how much have you changed?"

JJ smiled enigmatically and disappeared around a corner.

* * *

><p>Morgan whaled on the punching bag. When he finally exhausted himself, he pushed away from the punching bag and turned only to freeze.<p>

Sitting at the bench press machine was JJ.

She gave him an awkward little wave and looked around the room. "We had some good times at the gym, didn't we?" She gestured to the punching bag with a tilt of her head. "It's always tough when the unsub is in law enforcement."

Morgan could feel his anger re-building.

"Trying to rub it in?"

Though she felt like maybe she shouldn't have been, JJ was taken aback. "What?"

"Clever little Jennifer Jareau…" Morgan spat. "You fooled us all – the best brains in the FBI – and have managed to remain at large."

"Woah, you think _this _is fun for me?"

"You tell me."

"Morgan, I didn't come here to argue."

"You came to gloat?"

"Morgan, let me talk!" JJ snapped. She muttered to herself, "I should've expected this. You were just like this after you found out about Emily."

"What's that?" Morgan asked, having only caught bits and pieces.

JJ shook her head and said instead, "You of all people should understand the need for secre–"

"No," Morgan cut her off sharply. "You not telling us about your sister, I understand. You not telling us about whatever this crazy crap is, I don't. I didn't get it when Emily did it, and I don't get it now. And what's the deal with DHS? If this is anything like Emily's situation, why are they pursuing you?"

JJ considered her response carefully before answering cryptically, "Sometimes they get you involved in things, and sometimes they hang you out to dry."

"Who's 'they'?" Morgan had a feeling she wasn't referring to DHS.

JJ shrugged, and to make sure she didn't say more than she should, she quickly left the gym.

Morgan stared after her then turned back to the punching bag for another round.

* * *

><p>Feeling very satisfied, Garcia exited the toyshop. She was going to make her godson a very happy little boy. She figured he needed some cheer after his mother's disappearing act.<p>

"Helping the economy again?"

Garcia froze. There was no denying that it was _her _voice. But it couldn't be.

"Please tell me those aren't all for my son," the voice spoke again.

Garcia slowly turned until she faced JJ. "I'm not sure you get a say about it now."

JJ flinched but quickly recovered. "I've come to see you. Don't you think I've gone to see him?"

"You have?" Garcia eyed the other blonde skeptically.

"Ask your fellow godparent."

"Reid?"

JJ nodded in confirmation. "The one and only."

"So what are you doing here?"

"Like I said, I'm here to see you," JJ answered with a shrug.

"Why?"

"You're my best friend. Were… Are…" JJ fumbled with her words. "I don't really know what you think of me at the moment."

"I'm mad at you."

If Garcia could've crossed her arms, she would've. Unfortunately the bulk of her purchases prevented her from doing so.

"I don't blame you," JJ responded sheepishly.

"Promise me you're going to be ok."

JJ was surprised by the sudden 180. "Penelope, I –"

"I may be mad at you, but that doesn't mean I don't care about you. Promise me you'll be ok."

"Penelope, I can't do that."

Garcia stepped in as menacingly as she could. "Promise me."

"I'll do my best," JJ assured her, quickly backing away to avoid getting hit by the mass of shopping bags.

"You better," Garcia threatened. She knew there was very little she could do to JJ (that she was willing to – sending around photoshopped naughty pictures of the little blonde seemed a little harsh), but the younger woman did have one weakness. "Or I'll flood Henry with toys and clothes and spoil him rotten and…"

"OK! OK!" JJ said quickly, her hands up in a gesture of surrender. "I get the picture."

They shared a laugh.

"Want to stop by somewhere and grab some coffee?" Garcia asked tentatively.

Now that she had gotten over the weirdness of seeing her fugitive friend, Garcia wanted nothing more than to spend time with JJ. She'd missed her.

"I can't," JJ replied apologetically. "Fugitive, remember?"

Unwilling to accept such quick defeat, Garcia said, "You're here now."

"Exactly. I'm taking my chances as it is, Pen."

JJ gestured around them.

And Garcia had to concede that was true. They were standing out in the open in the middle of a public venue.

She gingerly set her purchases on the ground and pulled JJ into a fierce hug.

"Take care of yourself, Jayje."

JJ held on tightly and let herself be lost in the warmth of the Garcia's embrace.

When they finally detached from each other, JJ smiled at her best friend and then got lost in the crowd.

* * *

><p>"I need to talk to you," Garcia said forcefully to Reid as she entered the BAU bullpen.<p>

"Why?"

Grabbing Reid by the ear, Garcia pulled him out of his seat. "In private."

"Woah, Baby Girl," Morgan stepped in. "What's going on?"

"I need to talk to him. You can come too if you desire."

"Is this exclusive or can I come too?" Emily asked eyeing the trio warily.

"Fine!" Garcia threw her hands up in exasperation. "In fact, you know what, let's make it team meeting in the round table room."

When the six were gathered, Garcia said, "JJ came to see me last night. I was surprised to hear that she's visited you too, Boy Genius, and you said nothing!"

"Wait, PG. She visited me too," Prentiss intervened before Garcia could bite Reid's head off. "She came by my apartment, and I didn't tell anyone either."

"Same here," Morgan said. "Except at the hotel gym in Oakland."

"At a book signing in Chicago," Rossi added.

Garcia felt slightly hurt that she seemed to be the last on JJ's list. "So she visited all of us, and I was the last one."

"Not really. I got a phone call."

The others turned to Hotch in surprise.

"She never came to see you?" Emily asked incredulously.

"No. She visited Jack, but – like I said – I got a phone call."

Morgan's eyebrows rose. "Seriously?"

"Why is that so hard to believe?" Hotch asked, annoyed that the discrepancy had generated so much fuss.

"Because she's the Robin to your Batman," Garcia answered.

The other profilers all nodded their agreement, and Hotch was forced to ask, "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, do I need to put it in Captain America terms?"

"No."

Garcia seemed to take his response as a go-ahead to continue with the Batman and Robin analogy. "You two have your own lingo, you share secrets together, you spent all those late nights in the office together, you tell each other things you wouldn't tell the rest of us, you…"

"Thank you, Garcia. I get it." Hotch stopped her. Then to her and the rest of the team: "No one says anything about JJ's visits to anyone outside this room. None of us even tried bringing her in, and I don't need anyone on this team being charged as an accessory."

* * *

><p>Hotch sighed as he glanced at his watch. Leaving a few bills on the table as the tip, he exited the diner and headed for his car.<p>

On autopilot – which may not have been the best idea given the time of night – he absentmindedly opened his car door and settled into the driver's seat.

"Hey, Hotch."

Jerking slightly in surprise, he glanced at the rearview mirror and saw JJ sitting in the backseat.

"I was beginning to wonder if you were going to visit me."

"Oh?"

"The rest of the team got you in the flesh, and I got a phone call."

He couldn't pretend it didn't hurt him, her not coming to see him face-to-face.

"But I phoned you first. _And_ I saw you at Jack's soccer game," JJ justified.

"But we didn't talk."

"No, we didn't. That's what now is for." JJ fidgeted nervously. "Actually, truth be told, I umm… I was working my way up to you."

"I'm honored," Hotch said sarcastically. He sighed and tried to persuade himself not to let his hurt and concern manifest as anger. "You promised me if you needed help, you'd ask me."

"I know." JJ sounded properly apologetic.

"You didn't ask."

"I don't need help," JJ responded lamely.

Hotch scoffed. "You've been a fugitive for a few months. Sounds to me like you need help."

"It's complicated."

"As is everything with you," Hotch muttered under his breath. Raising his voice back up to normal volume, he asked, "Why now? You said you were working your way up to me. What was there to work up to?"

"You've always been able to read me like a book. Better than the others anyway. Maybe because I've always shared more with you. When we're face-to-face, all you need to do is look at me with that penetrating gaze of yours, and I find myself blabbering everything to you."

"Maybe because we're Batman and Robin."

"Huh?"

"Apparently that's how the team thinks about us."

He relayed Garcia's line of reasoning.

"Interesting."

"Yeah."

"Not inaccurate."

"No, I suppose not."

Silence fell.

"That doesn't mean we have to run around in tights, does it?" JJ joked, trying to break the ice.

She was successful.

Hotch snorted, and a smile spread across his face.

"I certainly hope not." He turned to face her for the first time. "I've missed you."

She graced him with a smile. "I've missed you too."

"Please say you're here to tell me this will all be over soon."

"I can't tell you what I don't know."

"You sure you don't know?" Hotch then added playfully, "Don't make me turn on the penetrating gaze."

"No!" JJ held her hands up in front of her face to shield herself. "I will resist the gaze!"

They filled the car with laughter.

"You should probably go," Hotch said regretfully, glancing at the diner. "I never spend this long in the parking lot after leaving the diner."

"Yeah," JJ agreed. "Don't want to look too suspicious."

She opened the door opposite the diner. "I'm glad we did this."

"Me too."

Hotch watched her disappear into the night before pulling out of the parking lot.

* * *

><p>Hotch stared at the file in front of him.<p>

He was certain he'd read the last paragraph a dozen times, but for the life of him, he still couldn't remember what it said. His mind was preoccupied with the previous night's encounter with JJ.

It had been good to see her. To use Garcia's terminology, Batman had missed his Robin, perhaps more than he'd realized.

He smiled as he remembered their laughter from last night. He didn't do that nearly as much with anyone else on the team. Though perhaps Dave was a close second.

Hotch heard Prentiss calling him from the bullpen, her tone urgent and pressing.

He exited his office and saw that Rossi had come out as well. "What's going on?"

"Just before the news cut to commercial break, they showed a picture of JJ and promised 'exclusive news' when they returned," Prentiss informed them. "Reid's getting Garcia and Morgan now."

As if on cue, the trio entered.

"Anything new?" Morgan asked.

Prentiss shook her head and gestured up at the screen where the news had resumed.

"We have an exclusive story…"

The team and rest of the bullpen stared up at the television screen.

"If the person in this picture looks familiar, you've probably seen her before, briefing the press as the liaison of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit. Nearly two years ago, Supervisory Special Agent Jennifer Jareau created and led a top-secret team using the codename Pearl Crescent. This team, composed of members from various agencies, handles special operations and was instrumental in the intel gathering prior to the mission that resulted Osama bin Laden's death. Other members of this covert group have yet to be revealed as they are still active…"

* * *

><p>AN: That last scene is actually the one that generated this fanfic. I don't know if anyone cares, but the development sort of went like this: I thought it'd be cool if the team found out something huge and dramatic about JJ via a newscast, and then it was deciding if JJ was with them or not, and then if JJ's not with them why would that be, and finally the cat-and-mouse game worked its way in.

There's more to this than meets the eye, so we have several more chapters to go. I hope you're still enjoying the ride. :)

_Thanks for reading!_


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: Instead of moving forward in this story, we're going to go backwards! This is entirely a flashback chapter, chronicling JJ's evolution up to the Weston Art Gallery warehouse (chapter 1). If you still have any questions about JJ's development or the team's goals after this chapter, please ask in a review or PM me. There may be a few things I've left unanswered on purpose, but all the same, I'd rather not risk plot holes.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p><em>"Jennifer," Madame Secretary Teresa Kalat greeted as JJ entered the Harry S. Truman Building. "Welcome to the State Department."<em>

_"Thank you, Madame Secretary," JJ responded flatly._

_Though her work with the Pentagon was fulfilling in its own right, it wasn't where she'd wanted to be. She missed the BAU, and that made all the difference in the world. As a result, she did her work as quickly as she could and bolted for home as soon as she was done. With Will working at Metro PD, they were both grateful for JJ's "normal hours."_

_But her work had been impressive as well as quick, catching her boss' eye, and now here she was being shared with the State Department._

_She really had to stop impressing people._

_"I must say, your sincerity is a bit lacking," the Secretary noted, though she didn't look at all displeased._

_"If I may speak honestly, Madame Secretary." JJ waited for the Secretary to nod before continuing, "I have enough work with the Pentagon."_

_"I do believe that to be true," the Secretary replied. "However, I also heard that you are very good at your work and extremely efficient to boot."_

_"With all due respect, Madame Secretary, that doesn't mean I relish extra work."_

_The Secretary laughed. "You're going to have to get used to it, darling. I know for a fact that DHS and the Justice Department also have their eyes on you."_

_And despite present company, JJ let loose a groan._

_The Secretary laughed again._

_"Come, Jennifer. We have much to discuss," the Secretary said and began leading JJ to her office. "And do stop referring to me as 'Madame Secretary.' I find it to be too stuffy. A simple 'ma'am' will suffice."_

* * *

><p><em>"DHS and Justice too?"<em>

_Secretary Craig Whishaw turned to smirk at the new arrival. "Ah, so Teresa told you then."_

_"Isn't working for two Departments enough?" JJ asked exasperatedly as they began to walk down the hall together._

_"Your involvement with them will be minimal," the Secretary reassured. "Secretary Kalat and I are sharing you, and the other two only get to borrow you every once in a while. That's what you get for being good at your job."_

_JJ was torn between pouting and glaring. "That's cruel and unusual punishment, sir."_

_"Well at least you no longer have media liaising duties."_

_About the time JJ had started getting job offers from the Pentagon, the CIA had pegged Abbottabad, Pakistan as a location of interest, a potential hideout for Osama bin Laden. With things ramping up, the DOD wanted the best liaison they could get, and JJ was their person of choice._

_When JJ started her work with the Pentagon, they had quickly determined that JJ's liaising would be strictly inter-departmental and inter-agency. In the scope of things, dealing with the press hardly measured up, and time with the media was time that could be spent on much more important matters._

_Besides, there were plenty of other people eager to stand in front of the camera._

_"Oh thank you, sir," JJ responded sarcastically._

* * *

><p>"<em>Jennifer, may we have a word?"<em>

_JJ looked up from the disaster zone known as her desk and caught sight of the Secretaries of State and Defense standing at her door._

"_Am I in trouble?" she asked, her eyes bouncing back-and-forth between the two._

"_Should you be?" Secretary Whishaw retorted as he shut the door behind him._

_JJ thought back on the day's events and looked around her office. "I promise to clean my desk?"_

_Secretary Kalat settled into a chair and snickered, "Don't make promises you can't keep, darling."_

"_We actually have serious business to talk about." Secretary Whishaw lowered himself into the remaining chair._

_Leaning forward on her desk with fingers clasped in front of her, JJ said, "I'm all ears."_

"_We're getting close to confirming bin Laden's location…" the Defense Secretary began._

"_I'm aware," JJ noted._

"…_but not as fast as we would like," he finished._

_JJ's eyebrows furrowed, and she slightly wrinkled her nose. "Our teams, the Agency… We have them doing all that we can."_

"_Legally, yes," Secretary Kalat replied gently, knowing her words were of huge consequence._

_JJ's eyes once again bounced back and forth between the two Secretaries._

_"Ma'am?"_

"_Many of the Senate committees are impeding our efforts," the Secretary of State elaborated. "Now this checks and balances business our government has, I'm grateful we have it, truly. However, at moments like this, it can be a bit stifling."_

"_Stifling," JJ repeated blankly, her mind still trying to fully process what was being said to her._

"_Yes, so we have a proposal," Secretary Whishaw picked up where Secretary Kalat left off. "We would like to create an asset of sorts: a team that operates outside of certain legalities. Under the radar, off the books, use whatever phrase you like. The mission statement of this team would be covert operations in intel collection, reconnaissance, you name it. The saying is 'knowledge is power,' and we're hoping that with additional resources we can both speed up the timeline and prevent casualties in the process."_

_Secretary Kalat caught JJ's eye. "And we'd like you to be the team's leader. As a well-versed liaison, you have the best vantage point, so to speak, of what needs to be accomplished, how it can be accomplished, and who's needed for it to be accomplished."_

_JJ stared at the two Secretaries sitting before her and carefully considered her response. "With all due respect, that sounds more than slightly preposterous. Not only that, I don't think I can be relied upon to operate a…"_

"_You've been operating a great deal more than you think, Jareau," Secretary Whishaw interrupted._

"_We're merely extending our trust," Secretary Kalat said in her most reassuring voice. "It'll be your show to run. Our involvement will be minimal."_

"'_Absolute power corrupts absolutely,'" JJ quoted. "You're not worried I'll go power crazy? Have sudden aspirations of taking over the world?"_

_The Secretaries smiled at her hypotheticals. _

"_We have a feeling you'll keep yourself in check," Secretary Kalat answered._

_JJ stared down at her hands. "May I take time to think about it?"_

"_Certainly."_

* * *

><p><em>A little more than a week later, JJ met with Secretary Whishaw in his office. "You have an answer for me?"<em>

_"One of my teams had a close call today," JJ answered obliquely._

_"And the outcome?" the Secretary asked with genuine concern._

_"No casualties."_

_The Secretary breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good."_

"_Though a few will need some time to recuperate."_

"_They can take all the time they need."_

_JJ nodded her thanks and carefully considered what to say next. "It made me think about your proposal, and I've come to a decision."_

"_Your team succeeded this time, they will continue to do so, and there is no need for use of such… sketchy methods?" Secretary Whishaw predicted._

"_No," JJ contradicted simply._

"_No?" the Secretary repeated in shock, though he was pleasantly surprised._

"_My team survived by the skin of their teeth. It was a miracle, so to speak, that it wasn't worse than it was. I don't want to wait until I lose them…" JJ trailed off not wanting to think about the possibility. "I can't count on miracles that may or may not happen." _

_The Secretary nodded with understanding._

"_You can have whoever and whatever you need." But before letting her go, he had one last thing to say, "I must emphasize discretion, however. If Senate finds out about this, the Executive Branch will claim ignorance and deniability."_

"_I understand."_

* * *

><p>"<em>Colonel Daniel Worth," a man in his late 50s announced himself with a knock to JJ's open doorframe. "The Secretary told me to meet with you."<em>

_JJ got up from her chair to greet him with a handshake. "Jennifer Jareau."_

_She returned to her position behind her desk and gestured for him to have a seat._

"_I know who you are," the Colonel said with a slight smile. "I was your brother's CO for a while. One Shot Wonder we called him, never needed more than a single bullet to down a target. How's your aim?"_

_JJ shrugged. "Decent."_

"_Hmph," Worth snorted. "Decent in terms of average humans or in terms of crazy Jareau standards?"_

"_They're not crazy," JJ disagreed._

_The Colonel scoffed in disbelief. "Spoken like a true Jareau."_

"_Secretary Whishaw explained everything to you?" JJ asked, bluntly maneuvering away from the topic of her shooting capabilities._

_The Secretary of Defense had insisted on assigning the second-in-command of her soon-to-be-formed "non-existent" team. He'd had someone in mind, someone he trusted without a doubt. Apparently that person was Colonel Worth._

"_He did."_

_The petite blonde stared at him. "So you have no problem with me being your superior?"_

_Worth shook his head. "Not if you've got a good head on your shoulders like your brother. And all the scuttlebutt I've heard around here indicates you do. No problem here."_

_Satisfied, JJ settled back into her chair. "That's good to hear."_

* * *

><p><em>JJ made her way through NSA headquarters, stopping to knock at an open office. "Hey, Lena, are you busy?"<em>

_Looking up from her computer, the office's inhabitant smiled. "Only pretending to be. Come on in."_

_Settling into a chair, JJ hesitated before asking, "I was wondering if you'd be willing to do something for me."_

"_Anything," Lena responded immediately._

"_You can say 'no'. You don't even know what I'm going to ask," JJ said, feeling awkward about her imminent request._

"_You got me out of my Gitmo post, so – like I said – anything for you."_

_Lena was a civilian consultant who worked as a profiler for the DOD. She had previously been stationed at Guantanamo Bay detention camp, where she had been uneasy with her assignment of pushing boundaries she wasn't sure were meant to be pushed. After working with the profiler and getting to know her, JJ had managed to arrange for a transfer to the NSA._

_JJ briefed her on the prospective unit and their mission; finishing with, "Consider it carefully. Don't say 'yes' just because I did you a favor once."_

_In spite of JJ's words, the other woman promptly replied, "Yes."_

_"Lena –"_

_"And it's not just because you did me that favor."_

"_If you're certain…"_

"_I am." Upon seeing the still hesitant expression on JJ's face, Lena quickly added, "And that answer is not going to change no matter how many times you ask, so stop."_

"_All right," JJ sighed. "Your first assignment is to help me with recruitment. I'll forward you a list of candidates, and I'd like you to pick out those you think would be most willing to participate."_

"_And from there?"_

_"You send the shortened list back to me, and I will make the final cuts. There are some additional criteria that I'd like to follow."_

_"Such as?"_

_JJ smiled wanly. "That's for me to know, and for you to never figure out. I prefer that everyone on this team have minimal contact with as well as have minimal knowledge about each other. Less chance of compromise. You work won't involve you coming in contact with anyone who ends up in the unit, so you seeing the candidate pool can be deemed acceptable."_

_Lena gazed pensively at JJ, finger tapping on the table._

"_But why have me help with the trimming at all? You've worked with profilers for seven years. Surely you could do this all by yourself."_

_JJ conceded the point with a nod. There were, however, other factors involved. The most important being:_

_"But I don't have the time."_

* * *

><p><em>JJ's hands and eyes scrambled to find the right folders. She had just gotten out of a briefing and had ten minutes to find all her materials and get to the command center four levels up from her office.<em>

_She heard a knock at the door._

_"Ma'am, do you have time for a consult?"_

_JJ didn't even bother looking up. "Fisher, do I look like I have the time?"_

_"No, ma'am. Sorry, ma'am," Fisher replied and immediately headed for the door._

_At Fisher's overly apologetic tone, JJ stilled and, despite her better judgment, called him back._

_"Fisher." When he turned back to face her, she smiled slightly. "You can have the nine minutes it takes for me to grab these files and get to the command center."_

* * *

><p><em>Her time in the command center had not gone well.<em>

_That is to say, the op she had been overseeing via satellite had not gone well._

_JJ had been watching a reconnaissance mission. It had started off well enough, but something changed – she still wasn't sure what – and jerky footage and incoherent shouting ensued, followed by silence. Everyone in the command center stared at the screen, where only the dusty ground was visible. Someone off screen said something in Urdu (later vaguely translated to something about moving)._

_And the next thing JJ knew, the screen was nothing but snow._

_Before she could plan any sort of rescue or recovery mission, she had to be certain of their new location. In order to find that out, she needed access to some fancy schmancy satellite that she didn't pretend to understand._

_So here she was, standing miserably in Senator Clarke's office, asking for permission._

"_It's a matter of balancing resources," the Senator said snootily. "Access to the satellite alone would cost…"_

_JJ interrupted him incredulously, "Are you putting a price tag on our personnel?"_

_Senator Clarke stared at her indifferently, unimpressed by her vehemence. "It has to be done."_

"_And what about you? What are you worth?" JJ asked, trying to make him see her point. "If you were the one missing out there, where would you want the money line drawn?"_

"_Warfare cannot be run on emotion and sentiment," Clarke responded, avoiding her questions entirely._

"_Of that, I'm very well aware," JJ spat. And she was. She had worked with the executive branch long enough to be acutely in tune with that fact. "But you can't proceed to –"_

"_Can't proceed to what?" the Senator challenged. "As an influential member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I can make the decision as I see fit, and I am. The final answer is no." _

"_Look," JJ refused to back down so easily. "If all you're concerned about is the budget, I've already spoken with –"_

"_No."_

_JJ shook her head slowly in angry disappointment and moved to leave._

_She paused at the door. "I am asking you to reconsider."_

"_Or what?" Senator Clarke sneered. "You'll storm angrily into my office and barrage me with threats?"_

"_No, that's not my style,"_ _JJ responded evenly in a voice that was enviously ominous despite being soft. "But know that I will get them back."_

* * *

><p><em>JJ had never been so grateful for a last minute cancellation.<em>

_Ever since she did the quick consult for Fisher, she barely had a minute to herself. Nearly every second she wasn't in a meeting, briefing, or up in the command center was filled with people clamoring around her asking for advice: "I only need a minute, Agent Jareau…" to be finished with "what's the best way to get through to…?" or "how's the best way to phrase…?" or "who can I contact to get … done?" _

_Lunch breaks were her safe haven. She'd be sure to disappear from her office and head somewhere quiet and peaceful, a small reprieve in a day filled with busy cacophony. _

_Unfortunately, those were only one per day, and she'd already gone on hers._

_Shoulders slumped and forehead on her desk, JJ groaned at the thought of her schedule for the next day._

_The International Criminal Court had decided to make some changes to the way its recently established task force dealt with – in their words – "prosecuting crimes of sexual violence in areas of conflict." With a few US attorneys involved in the task force and new extradition procedures under consideration, JJ had to liaise between the Departments of State and Justice along with their international counterparts. That meant a whole day of bureaucrats, lawyers, and international delegates._

"_What a joy," she thought to herself sarcastically._

_It also meant spending the rest of the day reading up on a lot of material, so she could spend the next day making sense of and to every party involved._

_Learning languages from Emily sounded useful right about now, but she didn't have the time. Finding the time to train with Morgan was difficult enough. JJ couldn't imagine fitting more into her already hectic schedule. She'd just have to continue learning on the job._

_JJ heard her phone ring._

_Forehead still on her desk, she blindly reached out for her phone. After a few errant grabs (she almost put the computer mouse to her ear before realizing the object she was reaching for shouldn't have curvature), she finally succeeded in getting her phone._

_Assuming whoever was calling wanted to fill her suddenly free time with another consult, she spat harshly into the phone, "Whatever you want, the answer is no."_

"_Oh sorry," a delightfully familiar voice replied._

_JJ's head snapped up._

"_Hotch! Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I thought you were someone calling for advice or a consult. How are you?" JJ said in rapid succession. She had never been so glad to hear his voice._

_There was a slight pause._

"_Feeling slightly awkward."_

"_What happened?" JJ asked immediately._

_"Well I am calling for some help." Hotch quickly followed that up with, "But if you're busy or stressed…"_

_"Never too busy for you, Hotch," JJ responded without hesitation. "What do you need?"_

"_I just briefed a multi-agency task force on Ian Doyle."_

_JJ racked her brain. The name sounded familiar… "The former IRA escapee from the North Korean prison?"_

_"Yes," Hotch confirmed. "We don't exactly handle terrorists on a daily basis, so I was wondering if you could –"_

_"I'll be there as soon as I can."_

_Though he would have liked nothing more than to see her, simply getting the information he needed via fax or e-mail was sufficient. He felt especially guilty having heard the exhaustion in her voice. "JJ, you don't have to."_

"_I want to," she insisted._

_Perhaps he heard the homesickness in her voice because he didn't argue. "I'll see you soon then?"_

_"Count on it."_

* * *

><p><em>JJ made her way through the Pentagon to the Defense Secretary's office.<em>

"_Sir, could I ask a favor?"_

"_Depends," Secretary Whishaw responded, not bothering to look up from the documents he was reviewing. "What is it?"_

"_The BAU has asked for help. They're pursuing Ian Doyle, and –"_

_The Secretary looked up suddenly. "Of course you can go."_

"_What?" JJ couldn't believe it was that easy._

"_I'd imagine this is a very hard time for Agent Prentiss and as a result for the team as well."_

_JJ gazed at him quizzically. "What does Emily have to do with this?"_

"_You don't know…" the Secretary said slowly. "Then I assume the BAU doesn't either."_

"_Don't know what?"_

_The Secretary sighed. "Agent Prentiss was a part of JTF-12. She was the team's undercover for the Doyle case."_

_JJ's jaw slackened. _

_She'd heard about JTF-12 and their methods. No wonder Prentiss hadn't been bothered by the cases when she arrived at the BAU… _

"'_Maybe I compartmentalize better than most people' my ass," JJ thought to herself. Then aloud to the Secretary, "Why wasn't I informed upon Doyle's escape?"_

"_You were busy with other duties. I didn't want you to be emotionally compromised when you didn't need to be. You weren't handling anything Doyle-related."_

_JJ couldn't have been gladder she'd insisted on heading to Quantico to Hotch._

"_I'll call Langley," Secretary Whishaw said, seeing the stunned look remain on JJ's face. "They should be ready to brief you when you arrive."_

"_Thank you, sir." She was about to head out when something occurred to her. "Oh, sir, one more thing…"_

"_Yes?" the Secretary asked, his eyes had already resumed their position on the papers in front of him._

"_Could you call Secretary Kalat to let her know I can't come in tomorrow?"_

"_Wait…" Secretary Whishaw's eyebrows furrowed in thought. "You're supposed to be helping her tomorrow." _

"_Yeah…"_

"_Nuh uh," the Secretary responded with a firm shake of the head. "You call her."_

"_Sir…" JJ protested._

"_I let her have you all day tomorrow because she desperately needs you. I'm not going to be the one to disappoint her."_

"_But sir, you're the one who said I could go." JJ's big blue eyes blinked down at him. "Please?"_

_He glared at her before finally huffing, "Fine. Get out of here. I'll call her."_

"_Thank you, sir!"_

_JJ bolted out the door before he could change his mind._

* * *

><p><em>"You've put together an impressive team," Secretary Whishaw said.<em>

_He was sitting at his desk with Secretary Kalat standing beside him. JJ sat on the other side, facing the two Secretaries and feeling very much like a child in front of her parents._

_The news of Osama bin Laden's death had just been released to the public. All the recognition and glory had gone to JSOC (Joint Special Operations Command), and JJ was perfectly fine with that. So was the rest of her team._

_Not one to easily accept praise, JJ responded, "All thanks to you."_

_Secretary Kalat shook her head. "Our idea, your creation."_

_"When you started with the Pentagon, you told me you wanted back to the BAU when you were done with your assignment." JJ nodded in acknowledgement, and Secretary Whishaw continued, "Does that still hold true?"_

_"Yes," JJ replied simply._

_"You're certain you want to leave?" Secretary Kalat asked. It wasn't just that she didn't want to lose an asset. She had come to appreciate JJ for the person that she was and enjoyed having her around._

_"Well, my job here is done, and the BAU needs me."_

_JJ had recently begun talks with Rossi about returning to the unit. She would've met with Hotch, but she knew he was already burdened with budget meetings and a potential assignment to an investigative taskforce in Pakistan._

_"I think it can also be said that we still need you," Secretary Whishaw said. "And you seem to have found a place for yourself here."_

"_I don't regret my time here," JJ admitted, though when she first started she never would've thought that would be the case. "However, I belong there."_

_Secretary Kalat began, "If you ever change your mind…"_

"_You'll be the first to know," JJ finished. "I'll finish out the month here, and I promise I'll take that time to consider."_

_There was, after all, a chance that she wouldn't be able to get back onto the BAU team. Who knew what hurdles the higher-ups could throw her way…_

"_Very well," Secretary Whishaw nodded._

_JJ asked, "And the team… it will still be active?"_

"_Yes," Secretary Kalat confirmed. "Though less utilized, I would think." _

"_As long as the war on terror continues, there'll always be a place for this team. And as per your recommendation, Colonel Worth will be taking over," Secretary Whishaw added._

_JJ nodded her approval. "Well at least they'll be in good hands."_

* * *

><p><em>"Hi there," JJ said, walking into the familiar hangar.<em>

_"Hello, hello," C greeted._

_"It's good to see you," D wrapped her in a tight hug, which JJ gladly reciprocated. G hugged her next, while N merely waved._

_Unlike JJ before him, C didn't have the sort of job that allowed him to be involved in a little bit of everything. As a result, op prep had become a more collaborative effort._

_"Good to see you all too." JJ glanced around at the others. "But you didn't call me away from the BAU for a love fest, so what can I do for you?"_

"_Weston Art Gallery owns a warehouse in Lorton , Virginia…" G began, but JJ cut him off._

"_Just tell me what you need me for. I don't need the whole backstory."_

_C briefed her quickly on the partial schematics hidden within a random art piece to be auctioned off within the week._

"_There's supposed to be a clue word in the auctioneer's introduction of the piece that indicates it's the one," he concluded._

_JJ looked to G. "The CIA has approved funds for obtaining things like this before. Why not this time?"_

"_Not enough returns per dollar," G answered. "Since the schematic sections are spread out among different owners, there's no urgency for the Agency to do anything about it. Not until… say, someone has a large majority of them."_

"_And we don't think it's prudent to wait 'til that happens," D quickly added on. _

"_You said Costanzo is the seller?" JJ asked for verification._

_C nodded, "That's why we need you."_

"_Ok, get me a manifest, and I should be able to recognize an alias and what piece you should target in the warehouse."_

"_What are we going to do with it when we get it?" N asked._

"_We slip it to the CIA," JJ responded promptly. "We can have I digitize, encrypt, and then insert it into one of the recent retrievals that's currently undergoing analysis. And as far as the Agency's concerned, they've had it for the past couple days. They just didn't know it."_

"_And the painting?" G asked._

"_Keep it intact. If you do your jobs correctly, no one will realize it's been tampered with until the auction winner gets his or her prize."_

_"Cool," N grinned._

_"F was supposed to come with us to the warehouse, but the NSA got a massive influx of chatter. She's swamped and can't join us, so… maybe you could fill in?" D suggested. "I mean… you're here helping us anyways."_

_JJ glanced at C who nodded with approval. Her eyes moved back to D, then to N and finally G._

_She exhaled shortly, lips quirking up into a smile, and shook her head._

_"The things I do for you guys."_

* * *

><p>Another Author's Note (let me know if you lot are getting tired of them): You may have noticed that I futzed with the <em>Valhalla<em>/_Lauren _timeline a little bit. The writers never said when Hotch called JJ, so you get my version of what happened. I did my best to make it realistic, logical, and canon compliant (e.g. Hotch had to call JJ more than an hour before her arrival because the drive itself from the Pentagon or Harry S. Truman Building to Langley and then to Quantico is approximately that duration).

Although now that I think about it (though it's irrelevant to this chapter)… What was the point of having JJ make a dramatic entrance to say "Let's get to work" at night if she wasn't going to brief them until the morning? Je suis confus.

I'd highly recommend ignoring me sometimes. There's a lot of useless thinking going on in here. *taps side of head*

Actually, speaking of ignoring me, I'm starting a wizardofahz tumblr, so my A/N's should be getting shorter as I'll just ramble over there. Tata.

Thanks for reading!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: Sorry for the long update wait!

We now move from the past to… a more recent past. This chapter is another set of flashbacks covering what JJ was up to during her time as a fugitive, so the events in this chapter will be concurrent with chapters 8 and 9. This is also the set up to the second mystery of this story, the first obviously having been JJ's enigmatic behavior and team.

To the wonderful **Cribellate,** fantastic **crazyobsession101**, and anyone else wondering about them: The schematics will be explained next chapter. Cheers!

* * *

><p><em>After they dropped Gannon off in Quantico, C and JJ headed back to the hangar.<em>

_They arrived to find that G, H, and M had arrived before them._

"_How's F doing?" JJ asked immediately._

"_Blood loss wasn't too bad," H responded. "Y says she'll be ok."_

_C exhaled, "That's a relief."_

_H gave JJ and C some time to let them process that relief before asking, "So how'd the BAU know where we'd be?" _

_JJ shook her head slightly to clear away her thoughts about F and made herself focus on the topic at hand. "One of Agent Prentiss' contacts found documentation of our upcoming mission. It was encrypted by layers of codes that Spence called 'relatively simple' to decrypt."_

_M frowned. "We _never _use 'relatively simple' encryptions even by Dr. Reid's standards." _

_G rolled his eyes. "We don't even have memos to encrypt."_

"_My point exactly," M responded, punching his shoulder lightly._

"_Wait…" C said slowly as he processed the new information. "If the document was encrypted, why would they think it's tied to us at all?" _

"_Included with the document were details about how Prentiss' contact got it and how they thought it was relevant, but I didn't get to look into that too much."_

_With the BAU team around her, JJ had tried to remain the façade of interested but not overly so, which meant her scrutiny of the information was limited. _

_C's eyes narrowed, and he crossed his arms. "This sounds fishy."_

"_I agree," JJ concurred. "I'm sure there's a way K can get access, so we can give that material a thorough look through."_

"_And then what?" H asked. "What are we going to do now?"_

"_Now?" JJ considered their options, but – coming up with no best answer – said, "Now, you're going to go home and get some rest. You all have jobs to get to tomorrow morning."_

"_Technically it's already tomorrow morning," G corrected under his breath looking at his watch, which read 1:54 AM. He had the decency to look properly chastised when M not so subtly elbowed him._

_When none of them moved to leave, JJ rolled her eyes and commanded, "Go! I'll figure something out and let you know when I do. But it certainly won't be now."_

_With hesitant glances, G, H, and M slowly took their leave._

_C remained behind. Staring intently at her, he asked JJ, "And what are you going to do now?"_

"_Call Secretary Whishaw." JJ handed him her now defunct cell phone, which she had taken apart in the car, and headed for their secure landline. "He needs to know what happened."_

"_And then?"_

"_Well I can't exactly go home, can I?"_

_C watched her carefully. Though her tone was neutral, he knew without a doubt that fact really bothered her. If one thing mattered more to Jareau than anything else, it was her family._

"_Jareau…" he began, intending to get her talking about how she felt. After all, talking was supposed to make one feel better._

_JJ quickly dialed the Secretary to evade the conversation. She had always been a private person – one tended to learn the value of privacy very early on when growing up in a small town – and was never into feelings talks, and she certainly wasn't going to start now._

* * *

><p><em>Will opened the door and watched Henry scamper into the house.<em>

_They had just arrived home from preschool, and Will's mind was still buzzing with the news from the morning's conversation. He wasn't sure what to think or even feel. He didn't feel like he was married to a (potential?) terrorist, and he certainly didn't think JJ could be involved in such activities. Yet last night's events and JJ's involvement seemed indisputable. _

_But what to tell their baby boy? That was the question._

_His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a cheerful "Mommy!"_

"_Hey, baby." _

_Will couldn't believe his ears. He sped up and turned a corner to see JJ down on one knee with Henry tightly encased in her arms. He watched her smile as Henry prattled on about his day, giving special mention to his godfather and those magic tricks._

_Pulling back from Henry, JJ smiled uncertainly at her husband. "Hi, Will."_

_He stared._

_JJ sighed internally at his reaction and gently said to Henry, "Hey, little man, why don't you go play while I talk to Daddy?"_

"_Okay, Mommy," Henry slobbered a kiss onto her cheek, grinned up at his daddy, and ran off to his room._

_Before Will could even open his mouth – though perhaps wouldn't have, he looked so stunned – JJ stood and said, "Will, please hear me out." _

_And only because she was the love of his life did he keep his mouth closed and nod for her to continue._

"_Will, everything is…" JJ looked at the ceiling, as if the answers to all her problems were hidden there. "It's complicated. What did the team tell you?"_

"_They told me what happened last night."_

_JJ's eyes moved from the ceiling to the floor. "Are they mad at me? Are you?"_

_Will shrugged noncommittally. "I think I just want to know what's going on."_

"_I can't tell you everything."_

_Will didn't respond. Interrogation 101: say as little as possible and let the suspect fill in the blanks. _

_Not that he wanted to think of his wife as a suspect._

"_It's crazy stuff." JJ spoke quickly in an almost frantic manner. "Some of it even Black Ops. The situation will sort itself out, but I don't want to wait for that. Look, I'm only telling you this because I can't stand being away from you and Henry. Not if I don't have to be. I know this will be hard for you. I'm not asking you to forgive me, but could you…" JJ's voice slowed, and she sounded on the verge of breaking. "Could you just… at least… tolerate me? Let me visit Henry? See you every once in a while?"_

_JJ's eyes met Will's, and she waited with baited breath for him to respond._

_Her husband sighed. "Remember when you were a lousy liar? I was head over heels then."_

"_Then," JJ sadly noted the word, eyes downcast. _

"_You've changed. You keep secrets left and right. Did you ever consider how this – whatever this is – would affect our family? What if Henry becomes a target again?" Will pointed in the direction of their son's room. "How can I allow that to happen?"_

_JJ took that as a "no" to her request. She considered protesting, arguing, or pleading her case but figured there was no use. She instead dejectedly turned to leave, stopping only when Will caught her arm. _

"_C'mere," he pulled her into a tight embrace. He whispered in her ear, "Stay. I can't say I understand, but it doesn't matter. I'm still crazy about you."_

_And Will couldn't help but think how normal this was despite the circumstances. Their arguments usually started with one of them being "unreasonable" – wanting to do something that the other couldn't quite understand – resulting in the two of them bickering until one of them inevitably conceded because they loved each other too much to get in each other's way._

_JJ responded with a strangled but grateful laugh and clung to him tightly._

_Will asked, "What do we tell Henry?" _

"_Nothing?" JJ said hopefully, her head resting on his shoulder. "He's used to me not being around for days at a time, and I'm hoping I can still be here as much as I normally am."_

"_Does this mean I don't need to ask Reid to baby sit next Saturday?"_

_JJ laughed again, lighter this time. "I'm pretty sure it's frowned upon to leave your three-year-old at home alone." _

_Finally they separated, Will taking a step back to look into his wife's now twinkling eyes._

"_But he won't be alone."_

"_No one else will know that."_

_They grinned at each other. Co-conspirators and it felt so – not good, that wasn't the right word – it felt all right._

"_Fine," Will replied. "I'll call Reid."_

"_Later," JJ said, a smile still playing on her lips. "Family time first."_

* * *

><p>"<em>There's something I haven't told most of you." JJ took a deep breath and mulled over all the possible ways to divulge her alter ego. Eventually she blurted out a simple, "I'm Pearl Crescent."<em>

_Her declaration was met with silence._

_To the others, Pearl Crescent was an American asset with an almost notorious reputation. Known for conducting interrogations in not so savory ways, he or she was efficient in extracting information from even the most stubborn, hardened detainees. When the government wanted nothing more than results, the saying 'the ends justify the means' meant the Pearl Crescent's questionable methods were often over looked._

_It also meant no one tried too hard to determine whom Pearl Crescent really was._

_Finally G managed a weak, "Seriously?"_

"_Yeah," JJ looked around at the group of stunned faces. "I'm not sure what I can say to convince you."_

"_Actually I don't think we need convincing." D remarked. While JJ didn't typically come off as the threatening type, they had all seen her do whatever needed to be done to complete their objective – no matter how difficult the task. "It's not that surprising in retrospect." _

_H turned to C. "Did you know?"_

_C nodded. "As did F and K."_

_The two women in question also nodded in confirmation._

"_Why are you telling us this now?" H asked._

"_In the documents included with the previously blown mission details, Pearl Crescent was associated with this team. C, F, and K have been helping me determine if the mention was purely coincidental or if it was something to truly consider, and we think that it's not something we should overlook._

"_You should have told us earlier," E directed at JJ._

"_I couldn't."_

"_But it affects us too." _

"_Which is why I just told you." JJ held up a hand to prevent him from speaking again. "We all have secrets in this business. When you find something out, you don't dwell on it. You process and move on. That's what I need us to do right now."_

"_Easy for you to say," H mumbled. After all, it wasn't as though she was the one who'd just had a major revelation dumped on them. Then again, as a CIA field operative, if anyone understood her position, it was him, so – addressing the whole group – he added, "But you're right."_

"_Good," F said, glaring up and down the table as if daring someone to contradict her. "We'd like for all of you to go over what you've found and analyzed so far, and see if this disclosure gives anything new meaning."_

_JJ could feel some tension in the atmosphere and felt the need to escape. She trusted C, F, and K to sort everything out._

_She rose to her feet. "I need to blow off some steam." _

_Emily. _

_Emily would understand. _

"_And where are you going to do that?" D asked, sounding too much like a disapproving parent for JJ's liking._

"_At your girlfriend's," she snarkily responded._

"_Prentiss is not my girlfriend," D called out to JJ's retreating figure, a blush spreading its way across his cheeks._

_He turned back to the others and was met with cheeky grins and raised eyebrows._

"_She's not my girlfriend."_

* * *

><p><em>M had wanted to come along – she missed her alma mater – but she had her day job to consider.<em>

_So there JJ was standing outside Evans Hall – UC Berkeley's math building (a.k.a. "the ugly one over there" according to the student she'd asked for directions) – having just met with a mathematician specializing in cryptography._

_It was a fruitful visit, giving her a lead into the author/origin of the encrypted memo that had previously remained out of reach._

_Thinking M would appreciate one, JJ grabbed a Daily Cal (the school newspaper). _

_She was surprised to see a news report on the front page that the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit was in Oakland and in the process of trying to break a suspect, who happened to be a local LEO. Accompanying the article was a picture of Morgan and Rossi escorting said suspect into the police station._

_JJ stared at the photo._

_It had been a while since she'd spoken to one of her ex-teammates and had lost track of their cases and locations. Now she and the team were both in the San Francisco Bay Area._

_What a coincidence…_

_Maybe it was time to visit Morgan._

* * *

><p>"<em>But do they want to out this team or Pearl Crescent?"<em>

_C's gaze swept back and forth across the table, stern eyes commanding someone to respond._

_The unit was gathered in the hangar discussing the latest developments in their investigation. A few months in, and they still had no idea who the mysterious "they" were._

"_Could be both," G suggested. "Both entities have made enemies over the past year. I'm sure there's plenty of overlap."_

"_True," D began. "But it seems doubtful…"_

_JJ sat back and let the discussion wash over her. She stared ahead blankly. _

_She didn't care to participate in the discussion. The team would sort it all out, and either way didn't bode well for JJ. _

_The one thing that did matter to her was the extent of her unit's involvement. If the mysterious "they" wanted the unit, fine. They'd put up one hell of a fight. But if Pearl Crescent was the one they were after, then she'd gotten her team involved in something unnecessary, put them in danger when they didn't need to be._

_JJ finally tuned back in to hear N say, "What if we're not considering everything?"_

"_How do you mean?" E asked, curious as to what they could've missed._

"_We've been so focused on the document that we barely considered the events before or surrounding it. Take the Budinger mission for example. Video evidence when we go out of our way to make sure there is none? And at Ironlock Dynamics, there should've been no need for Jareau to expose herself. Even with the BAU there, everything should've gone off without a hitch."_

_F's expression was skeptical. "That's either a lot of coincidences or a lot of very meticulous planning, and I kinda doubt the latter." _

"_No, no. That makes sense," D contradicted. "Our initial encounter with the BAU… that was coincidence, and no matter how persistent the unit is, they should've met a dead end. But they didn't because the Budinger surveillance footage showed up. That led to Prentiss and her contacts, the memo, and the second encounter at Ironlock. The situation's tense, so no one thinks twice about an errant shot, especially given the fact that it hit one of our people, not theirs."_

_He glanced quickly at F, but her reaction to the mention of her shooting was practically non-existent. _

"_You don't think it's far-fetched?" G asked hesitantly, torn between believing it to be preposterous and believing it to be rather brilliant._

"_I think it's crazy enough to be true," D replied confidently._

"_Ok," C said authoritatively. "Let's roll with that. Where does that lead us?"_

"_Well the Pearl Crescent mention can't have been insignificant. If someone wanted to expose this team, there are easier ways than this. They do have access to the surveillance footage after all. The mention was a message, which means…" E trailed off._

"…_which means this is about Pearl Crescent," F finished with an apologetic look to JJ._

"_They're targeting you," C turned to face JJ. "Revealing the team was just an easy way to get to you."_

"_Or so we suppose," JJ replied simply, her face and voice showing no trace of worry or fear._

"_What else is there?" N asked, sounding very much like he wanted her to come up with a more plausible situation. _

_One that didn't involve a large bull's-eye on her forehead._

_To everyone but JJ – even the typically grumpy, unsupportive E – it didn't matter who the target was. They were in this together. They'd protect her if need be, but that didn't mean they didn't hope for an alternative._

_JJ said nothing. She merely shrugged, pushed her chair away from the table, and headed for the door._

_With a disapproving voice, F asked, "Where are you going?"_

"_To visit a friend."_

_Her face-to-face with Hotch was long overdue, and she wanted…No. She needed his quiet strength, his dependable comforting presence._

"_It's not safe," C protested._

_JJ didn't even bother turning back to face him. She merely shrugged her shoulders and continued walking. "Well apparently it's never been safe, so I see no difference in going out now."_

_He considered going after her, but she had learned how to spot a tail from a mile away. As the door closed behind her, C simply shook his head and muttered, "Stubborn little blonde."_

* * *

><p><em>"We have an exclusive story…"<em>

_Eyes glued to the monitor, E called out to the others. "Hey, guys!"_

_The others quickly joined him._

_"If the person in this picture looks familiar, you've probably seen her before, briefing the press as the liaison of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit. Nearly two years ago, Supervisory Special Agent Jennifer Jareau created and led a top-secret team using the codename Pearl Crescent. This team, composed of members from various agencies, handles special operations and was instrumental in the intel gathering prior to the mission that resulted Osama bin Laden's death. Other members of this covert group have yet to be revealed as they are still active…"_

"_Ah crap!" C snarled as he reached for his cell phone._

_Seeing the movement in his peripheral vision, D tore his eyes away from the news report and asked, "What are you doing?"_

_Glaring at the screen, C pressed the phone to his ear and said, "Calling Jareau. We need to make sure she knows."_

* * *

><p><em>Thanks for reading!<em>

A/N2: I've never really written a JJ/Will scene before, so sorry if they don't seem in character. I tried watching episodes to research their dynamic, but I think I'm pretty hopeless. Overall this doesn't feel like one of my better chapters, but it felt mean to make you all wait even longer for an update. Hope it doesn't let you down.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: Sorry for the long update wait. I'd like to promise that it won't happen again, but I know I can't. Anyways…

Back to the future! Well, back to the present anyway. Now we pick off where chapters 9 and 11 left off. As always, feel free to ask questions.

* * *

><p>Henry helped his mom prepare lunch in the kitchen as his father tidied up the living room.<p>

Will picked up tiny trucks and straightened the couch throw, the television providing background noise. His head snapped around as he heard JJ's name.

"…created and led a top-secret team using the codename Pearl Crescent. This team, composed of members from various agencies, handles special operations and was instrumental in the intel gathering prior to the mission that resulted Osama bin Laden's death."

"JJ, come here!"

JJ entered the room and froze upon seeing her face on the screen.

Then suddenly she snapped into action. "Will, we have to go."

"But…" He gestured at the television. "You should be in the clear."

It seemed simple enough to him. The way he figured it JJ was a fugitive because of some Black Ops stuff, and with the reveal of this news report everything should be on its way back to normal again.

"Not quite how this works," JJ muttered as she glanced around the room.

"Why?" Will persisted, wanting a clear answer. "This explains –"

"Later!" JJ cut him off as she ran back to the kitchen and their son.

Will could hear JJ on the phone. "Yeah, I've seen it… I'm with them now… "

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later they were in a sedan heading north.<p>

There were sandwiches and snacks in the trunk, Henry was napping in the backseat, and the two parents sat quietly in the front as JJ drove.

"Where are we going?" Will asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Whitby," JJ responded simply, eyes fastened on the road ahead.

"Where?" Will had never heard of this Whitby.

"Whitby," she repeated unhelpfully.

Will had to refrain from rolling his eyes. He had heard her perfectly well, which he was pretty sure she was aware of. "I don't know where that is."

"Ontario, Canada."

"And why?"

"Running from the good guys is much easier than running from the bad guys."

"Okaaaay." Will drew the word out unsure as to whether or not that was an actual answer.

JJ sighed then elaborated, "As a detective, if you were pursuing a suspect, would you go after his or her family?"

"You know I wouldn't."

JJ reverted back to her terse responses. "There you go."

Will glanced back at Henry who was still sound asleep.

"Are you going to stay with us in Canada?"

"No," JJ answered wistfully. "Will, I wish I could, but I need to do what I can to protect this family. For now, that means you and Henry staying hidden and me staying away."

Will wanted to protest, but ultimately he understood, so he said instead, "We'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too," JJ murmured.

She refused to look at her husband.

She stared at the road and tried to keep her emotions in check.

Saying good-bye was going to be hell.

* * *

><p>Major Phillip Schore scowled as his eyes drifted toward his office.<p>

He stood in the bullpen of the Department of Homeland Security's Nebraska Avenue Complex where people bustled about left and right immersed in their investigation of Jennifer Jareau and the strangely timed news exclusive.

The exclusive was rather suspicious and quite frankly gave him more work than he would have liked.

He scowled again as his eyes landed back on the evidence board in front of him.

"Major Schore!"

The man in question turned to see the BAU approaching.

_Great_, he thought to himself. _Another complication_.

"What are you doing here?" he asked wearily.

"We need to know what's going on," Agent Hotchner demanded.

"Can't help you with that," Schore said flatly, hoping beyond all hope that the BAU could somehow be easily turned away.

"You telling us you have no idea what's going on?" Agent Rossi asked skeptically.

"I'm telling you that…" the Major stopped as he realized they were starting to draw attention. "Let's talk in my office."

As they gathered in his office and Schore closed the door behind him, Rossi prompted, "You were saying?"

Schore sighed and answered, "There's no record of Agent Jareau's special team. We're looking into it, but there doesn't seem to be anything."

Reid observed his microexpressions carefully. "You're hiding something."

"As is the case with all ongoing investigations, I cannot divulge –"

"Bull," Morgan cut him off. "What are you keeping fr–"

The door opened and a familiar voice interrupted him. "Schore, I need to take a look at everything you've found today."

"You," Hotch's brow furrowed as his mind registered the identity of the speaker. The other profilers stared, and Garcia alone was out of the loop, having never heard the voice before.

"Yes, me," C waved him off as the Major handed him a report.

"Wait…" Morgan whirled around to face Major Schore. "Are you in on this?"

"Meet E," C said absentmindedly as he continued rifling through the pages.

Garcia's eyes widened with realization. "You pulled a Kingsley Shacklebolt!"

"Yes, we did," the Major confirmed with a slight smile.

"What's a Kingsley Shacklebolt?" Colonel Worth asked, but before anyone could respond, quickly followed up with, "Never mind, I've got what I need."

He faced the BAU. "You want to help."

It wasn't a question. It didn't need to be. Worth was very well aware of the BAU's eagerness in helping their friend, whatever that meant.

The BAU responded with a medley of verbal and non-verbal affirmative answers.

"Then we'll finish this elsewhere." He gestured for the BAU to follow him. "Schore, I'll update you later."

* * *

><p>The Colonel began briefing them on their way to the hangar, communicating across the cars by speakerphone.<p>

As they arrived, the BAU team was still trying to wrap their heads around the tangled web that JJ's creation had become.

"So the international team bit…" Prentiss brought up as she exited an SUV.

"A total crock that Jareau came up with," the Colonel said over his shoulder as he entered the pass code to unlock the hangar door.

"And the art gallery?" Morgan asked, trying to figure out exactly what made a piece of art worthy of the unit's attention. "What was the deal with the painting and schematics?"

Colonel Worth sighed. "Well I guess Jackson briefed you already, so…"

"Jackson?" Reid instantly latched onto the familiar surname. "As in Parker Jackson from the CIA? He's in on this too?"

The Colonel smiled coyly as he lead the team into the building. "You can guess which letter he is later. Anyway, the schematics. A German scientist developed a new technology for biological weapons dispersal, but he spread the pieces of the schematic around as a sort of precautionary measure, guess he didn't want to be 'Death, the destroyer of worlds' like Oppenheimer. Obviously technology like that is a great commodity for intelligence agencies, terrorist cells, and whatnot, so they became highly sought after. Jackson found out about one of the pieces being up for sale locally and alerted us when the CIA wouldn't approve the funds to obtain it."

"And the scientist?" Prentiss asked. "Any chance he could be turned? Become an asset?"

"We would if we could, but you can't turn a dead man."

"Jackson mentioned that the CIA had managed to retrieve a section prior to that night, so then our government has two?" Rossi tried to clarify.

"Unfortunately, no," the Colonel replied with a shake of the head. "What they have is what we got for them."

"Why couldn't JJ just tell us?" Reid asked. Despite his IQ, matters like this were never intuitive to him. "We've dealt with classified information before. And she wouldn't have had to be a fugitive."

"You don't get it," Worth sighed. "This isn't classified. It's non-existent. Not on paper anyway. We're a sort of Executive Branch backdoor option. There's no Senate committee overseeing us, and if we get caught, no one will acknowledge any official involvement with us."

"They hang you out to dry," Morgan said, remembering what JJ had said to him that night in the Oakland gym. He then asked incredulously, "And you don't have a problem with that?"

An unfamiliar voice floated in from behind him. "Each of us understands that while unfortunate it is imperative."

The BAU turned to see a petite brunette. Though a civilian, she had the demeanor and stance of a military woman, having worked with military personnel for her entire career.

"Everyone, this is Janet Bailey," Worth introduced the newcomer. "She's a technical analyst for the Defense Intelligence Agency."

Bailey nodded at the group then said to Garcia, "It's an honor to meet you. I've heard so much about you."

"Why don't you two go off and compare notes or play with your toys or whatever," the Colonel said before he could get an earful of computer geek-speak.

They immediately complied, chattering away about the latest developments in security software.

"Why the spotlight on JJ?" Hotch asked, eyes intensely focused on Worth. "Why not any of the rest of you or all of you as a unit?"

"As a damn good liaison, Jareau had an influence on every department, every agency. If there was ever such thing as a political black box, it would be Jareau."

"Actually, sir," Bailey had returned, leaving Garcia at the computer hub on the other side of the hangar. "Could I talk to you for a moment?"

The two quietly conferred for a short while.

"This is nuts," Morgan muttered. "This whole thing is crazy."

"It's…" Hotch searched for the right word. "It's certainly unexpected."

Prentiss glanced around the hangar. "Actually, it's quite impressive."

"Thanks, JTF," the Colonel said as he returned to the group.

The ex-spy reddened slightly at the nickname.

"Anyway, I'm off to interview the reporter. Would some of you like to come along?"

Hotch nodded.

"Dave and Reid, stay here with Garcia. Do whatever you can to help. Morgan, Prentiss, and I will go along with the Colonel."

* * *

><p>As they approached the news station, the profilers were surprised to see Senator Clarke. He was dressed in casual clothing and a sports cap so as to be incognito, his expression as sour as usual.<p>

"What the hell do you want, Colonel?"

"We need your help."

"Where's your precious Jareau when you need her?"

Colonel Worth ignored the jab. "You're going to help get the Senate off our backs."

"As if," Clarke scoffed sardonically.

"They're mad because they had no oversight, because none of them had any clue what was going on. But they're wrong. You knew."

As he spoke, the Colonel neared the Senator, his large figure towering over the other man's.

Clarke's eyes darkened as he realized the direction the conversation was heading in.

"You will help us diffuse the situation, or we expose that you've known all along." The Colonel smiled suddenly. "We are at a news station after all. Your choice."

Clarke glared up at him. His eyes then drifted futilely towards the profilers.

"Fine," he spat, his eyes resentfully landing back on the man before him. "Consider it done."

Colonel Worth watched the Senator stalk off then lead the others into the lobby.

He strode right up to the receptionist. "We're here to see Meghan Rafferty."

The receptionist lazily tapped a few keys.

"She's in a prep meeting and… won't… be available for…" his last few words trailed off as his eyes met the Colonel's glare.

"Make. Her. Available," the Colonel punctuated every word with as much intimidation as possible.

"She's on the 7th floor, conference room A," came the quick response.

One elevator ride later, the four of them were walking down the 7th floor hallway to said conference room.

"Ms. Rafferty, if I could have a word," Colonel Worth said as he carelessly flung the door open.

"Excuse me," the reporter spluttered in response. "I'm in a meeting."

"Don't care," Worth said simply. "Everyone else, out."

The room's occupants complied, some slower than others as their curiosity got the better of them. The lingering got them nothing but glares.

As soon as the door closed behind the last person, the Colonel rounded on Rafferty, "What were you thinking?"

Baffled and slightly off-put, the reporter maintained an air of polite indignation. "Pardon?"

"The exclusive on Jennifer Jareau," Hotch clarified for her.

Rafferty glanced at him, and the suit told her all she needed to know about their identities. "What? JJ not happy about the coverage, so she sends her goons after me?"

"JJ?" Prentiss frowned at the reporter's use of the nickname.

"Yeah, she's a friend. I went to Georgetown with her… haven't talked to her in a while though," Rafferty added the last clause as an afterthought.

"And the exclusive?" Morgan asked.

The reporter turned to the handsome man with a teasing smile. "You must know how it is, boys and girl. I won't reveal my source."

Content for the moment to let the profilers do all the talking, the Colonel watched as Hotch asked, "You didn't think to talk to JJ about this before going on air?"

"Look, I know how she is about praise even when she deserves it. I figured – if she hadn't by now – it was time she learned to accept it."

"Revealing the identity of Agent Jareau was the dumbest you could do," the Colonel said, no longer able to contain himself.

"Our unung heroes deserve recognition," the reporter answered with utmost sincerity. "I was told it was fine because she's no longer with the unit. I wouldn't have aired this if I thought it would hurt her."

"Unfortunately that's not how it works," Prentiss responded gently.

Worth, on the other hand, had no qualms about obliterating misconceptions or laying on the guilt.

"If there's one person we can't have on everyone's radar, it's Jareau," he snarled. "Every terrorist, criminal, or organization that has ever been taken down a notch by Pearl Crescent is going to be crawling out of the woodwork to get her. You put her in danger, and now you have to help get her out of it. Who's your source?"

Rafferty sighed.

It went against every principle she had as a reporter – usually threats made her more stubborn – but this was for JJ, so she said:

"All I have is an email address."

* * *

><p>"What'd you find out?" Rossi asked as the four entered the hangar.<p>

"Got an email address," Morgan answered.

Worth handed Bailey and Garcia a slip of paper. "Find out what you can."

"On it, my liege," Bailey responded and immediately began typing.

Worth cocked his head at the uncharacteristic answer.

Bailey's fingers slowed to a stop as she registered what she had just said and whom she'd said it to. Blushing slightly, she pointed a finger at Garcia. "She's rubbing off on me, sir."

Prentiss finally voiced something that had been nagging at her. "How do we know JJ hasn't gotten into trouble already?"

"She's been checking in," Bailey replied promptly, glad for the change in subject. "I could call her if you like."

"Please," Hotch said with a nod.

She looked up at the Colonel and dialed when he gave his approval.

"Hello?" JJ answered warily.

"Jayje, are you all right?" Garcia asked immediately.

They could practically hear JJ frown. "How'd you get this number?"

"Relax, Jareau," Worth said, though he knew she wouldn't. "They've been brought into the fold."

"Please tell me you're joking."

The members of the BAU eyed each other awkwardly. Somehow they'd never imagined JJ so cold and exclusive, especially as it was them they were talking about.

But the Colonel understood where she was coming from: JJ wanted the BAU out of the crosshairs. If anything, involving them moved them closer to the bulls-eye.

Worth justified his decision, "This is turning into a SNAFU*, and we need people we trust. You trust them. That's good enough for me."

There was a pause.

Then she said, "We'll talk about this later."

"Are you all right?" Hotch repeated Garcia's earlier question.

"Fine for now," JJ sighed. "What's going on over there? Have you found anything yet?"

"A couple dead leads. Literally dead," Worth told her promptly. "I'll tell you about them later. We spoke to Meghan Rafferty, and she gave us something to follow."

"You managed to get something out of Meghan? I'm impressed."

"Yeah, about that, you never mentioned she's a friend."

"We haven't talked in years."

"So she said."

When JJ didn't respond, Reid leaned in towards the speakerphone. "JJ?"

"Guys, I'll call you back," JJ said, her voice obviously distracted.

The last things they heard before the dial tone were a series of expletives from JJ (an impressive set even to the Colonel) and gunshots.

* * *

><p><em>Thanks for reading!<em>

A/N2: SNAFU is a military abbreviation for "Situation Normal: All F*cked Up".

At this point, you should have a pretty good idea about the identities of several letters. Feel free to share any guesses via review.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: Sorry for the long wait! I'll make it up to you all. Somehow, sometime. Also, I hope everyone on the US East Coast got through Hurricane Sandy all right. *hugs*

This story is heading into slightly darker territory. I'm going to keep it at a T rating, but let me know if you ever feel it should be "upgraded" to M.

Bonus points to whoever gets the _Dharma & Greg_ reference.

* * *

><p>They stared blankly at the phone.<p>

"That was…" Garcia began shakily. "That was… That's not as bad as it sounds, right?"

"No, of course not," Bailey agreed, though her voice lacked conviction. "It's Jareau. She can take care of herself, and she said she'd call back, so…"

She gestured at the phone as she trailed off as if she expected it to ring at any second.

They waited.

A heavy silence descended instead, threatening to strangle the lot of them.

It was a terrible feeling, helplessness. The hangar's occupants could do nothing to help, and it occurred to some of them that they didn't even know where JJ was.

And so they waited some more.

Then the phone rang.

They jerked in surprise, and Bailey quickly moved to accept the call.

"Hello?" Worth's voice was uncharacteristically tentative.

"Sorry about that," JJ's voice came through.

"JJ!" Garcia gasped, and the room breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"I said I'd call you back. Did you doubt me? I'm hurt," the elusive blonde quipped humorlessly.

She sounded tired but otherwise all right if the teasing was any indication. Then again, there were plenty of things that could easily be hidden via telephone.

"Are you okay?" Reid asked. He didn't care about the teasing or being too literal. He just wanted to know she was all right.

"Fine," JJ answered quickly.

Too quickly.

"Hmph," Worth snorted. "I'll believe it when I see you. Can you come in?"

There was a slight pause as JJ checked her watch.

"Yeah. Give me several hours, and I'll be there."

* * *

><p>"The prodigal daughter returneth."<p>

Heads snapped around towards the familiar voice, but before any of them could lay eyes on JJ, Garcia engulfed the smaller blonde in her arms.

"Owww," JJ groaned.

Pulling back quickly, the tech analyst gave her a quick once-over. "You're hurt."

"Just a little."

It was quite the understatement.

Blood had trickled down the left side of her face, and she clutched her right arm close to her body.

"Sorry about the blood," JJ apologized to Garcia, gesturing at the new smears on her outfit.

"Let me talk a look," Worth dragged the closest chair over and sat her down.

"It's nothing. Really," the former liaison said, convincing no one. "Will and I have matching gunshot wounds. That's all."

Prentiss rolled her eyes. "Right. Nothing major."

"So what happened?" Worth asked as he began to probe her shoulder.

"Not much," JJ hedged as she winced. "What's been going on here?"

"You're avoiding," Rossi chided.

"Well I did say we'd talk about you all being here, so let's not avoid that," the petite blonde shot back.

Bailey shifted uncomfortably, but Worth stared JJ straight in the eye.

"I already told you. We need people we can trust, and you trust them."

"And I trusted you to keep them out of it. Look where that got us. Not that I'm unhappy to see you," she quickly added upon seeing some fallen faces.

"Why are you so opposed to it?" Morgan asked, hiding his hurt under a facade of frustration. "Us being here."

"The farther away from this you are, the happier I am."

"Out of sight, out of mind," Prentiss explained as the former football player opened his mouth to object once again. "When Doyle threatened to go after you guys, he only kept track of my team members _at the time_. He included Seaver amongst the group rather than JJ, and – no offense to Ashley but – Jayje means more to me than she ever did."

"Thanks," JJ said both for the unexpected sentiment and the understanding.

Finished with his examination of her shoulder, the Colonel poured a liberal amount of antiseptic onto a handkerchief and began to wipe at her brow.

"Ow!" JJ yelped, swatting his hand away.

Worth cocked a single, unimpressed eyebrow. "Seriously? I probe at your gun shot wound, and you don't make a peep, but for this you scream bloody murder?"

"I didn't scream bloody murder, and it stings!" JJ glared at him petulantly.

Worth rolled his eyes then looked to Hotch for assistance.

The unit chief nodded and tried to distract the younger woman. "So what's the plan?"

"Stay as incognito as possible, figure out what's going on. Same old, same old."

"What about protective custody?" Hotch suggested.

It hadn't exactly been full-proof for his family, but something had to better than nothing. He refused to believe otherwise.

"While my family's in danger? I don't think so."

"You've relocated Will and Henry," Bailey piped in.

"Them, yes. The rest of my family, no."

"JJ, you can't protect everyone," Hotch reminded her as gently as possible.

As painfully true as that statement was, JJ was adamant to try anyway. "I can't have people going after my brother any more than you would've wanted Foyet to go after Sean. Besides, you guys are family too."

"We can take care of ourselves," Prentiss protested.

"And I put as much stock in that as you did," JJ retorted.

"Point taken," the brunette conceded.

"No," Morgan shook his head at the both of them. "Point _not_ taken."

"I agree," Reid added quickly.

"Thirded," Garcia joined in.

"First things first," Worth interrupted. Looking down at JJ, he said, "I'm taking you to Y. He'll fix up your shoulder better than I can."

As the Colonel began to lead her away, Rossi prompted, "JJ?"

"Yeah?"

"What's the personal connection? Why Pearl Crescent if you don't think there's anything remarkable about the species?"

JJ shrugged her good shoulder. "Ever since I was a kid, I liked the name."

"That's it?" The esteemed profiler asked skeptically.

Code names for such important enterprises were often meaningful. That her nickname seemingly had such a casual connection... well, he hadn't even considered that possibility, and that wasn't something he was willing to accept.

"Does there need to be more to it?" JJ asked as she neared the door. "Variegated Fritillary and Green Comma don't sound nearly as cool."

When the only responses to the names were blank expressions, Reid explained, "They're also butterflies found in Pennsylvania."

"Hole in one, Spence. See you guys in a bit," JJ said as she slipped out the door.

"Did you know that…" the genius began.

The others groaned.

* * *

><p>One day later, Hotch surveilled the hangar.<p>

He had managed to convince Strauss that the BAU was needed for a classified investigation (which was almost the truth) and that they'd be away from the office for a few days, more if he could swing it.

It was a rather typical scene for the BAU: eyebrows furrowed in concentration, eyes glued to either papers or screens, and the sound of Garcia's fingers tapping away at a keyboard.

Then he looked carefully at JJ. She appeared to be in pain, stressed, exhausted, and tense – none of which were surprising – and Hotch determined a break was in order.

He had a sudden idea.

He approached her and laid a hand on her shoulder. "C'mon."

JJ looked up uncertainly. "Where're we going?"

"The Batcave. You need a break."

The petite blonde cocked an eyebrow. They had only recently heard of their nicknames, and they'd certainly never designated a location as their Batcave.

But because they'd been designated Batman and Robin for a reason, she had a fairly good idea where he was referring to.

"Ok."

Garcia's head shot up quickly, eyes widened with delight. "You have a Batcave?!'

Morgan however looked more skeptical, as if he doubted it could be anywhere cool. "Is it just your office?"

"No, that's Wayne Enterprises," Hotch said with a mock sincerity.

"Duh," JJ added teasingly.

"Let's go, Robin," Hotch pulled her chair away from the table.

She smiled up at him and obliged.

As the unit's Batman and Robin walked away, Garcia stared at her screen and chanted to herself, "I will NOT hack their records to find the Batcave. I will NOT hack their records to find the Batcave. I will NOT hack their records to find the Batcave."

* * *

><p>"I can't believe we took a break for pie."<p>

The two exchanged smiles and Hotch shrugged, "It's not like I flew you out to Reno for it."

"Reno?" JJ looked at him quizzically. She didn't think Reno was known for its pie. "Of all the places to choose from, you pick Reno?"

Hotch shrugged again. "I don't know. I think I heard something about them having great blueberry pie or something."

JJ smiled as the breeze ruffled her hair, the shorter strands tickling the base of her neck.

"Thanks for this," JJ said sincerely.

"What? The pie? Don't mention it," Hotch said as he took another bite.

"No, for… for everything. For sticking by me, for believing in me, for looking out for me, for everything this pie represents," JJ finished awkwardly as she realized just how corny she'd allowed herself to get.

"You mean 3.14159?" Hotch smart-assed to ease her discomfort.

JJ rolled her eyes. "You _are_ a nerd."

"You're just jealous of my coin collection."

Nearly choking on her pie, JJ managed an incredulous, "As if."

"It's okay to admit it, JJ," Hotch said smugly as he finished off his slice of pie. "My collection is as massive as it is admirable."

If it weren't for the sudden trill of his cell phone, JJ might very well have thrown the remainder of her pie in his face.

"Agent Hotchner. … Oh, hello, Sheriff…" Hotch's face fell. "Are you certain? … I'll see what I can do."

"Got a new case?" JJ asked as he ended the call. When the older man hesitated, JJ grew concerned. "Hotch, what is it?"

Finally, Hotch's eyes met hers. "That was Chief Yates from North Mammon. Polly Homefeldt has gone missing again."

* * *

><p>"Who's Polly Homefeldt?" Rossi asked as the BAU gathered together.<p>

"Family friend," JJ answered simply.

"Right, and it's normal for us to know each other's family friends," Prentiss remarked sarcastically. It seemed only she and Rossi didn't know who Polly was, and she hated feeling out of the loop.

Hotch and JJ traded glances, and she nodded for him to explain. "Polly is the daughter of a friend of JJ's aunt. The BAU helped with her case the last time she went missing."

Rossi looked to JJ. "How close are you and Polly? Why take her?"

"We play soccer whenever we're both in town. Sometimes our families celebrate Thanksgiving together."

Both families had known the misery of their tragedies being the talk of their respective small towns, and solidarity went a long way in maintaining close friendships.

"Where are your brother, mother, and aunt?" Reid asked.

"I haven't moved them, but they're safe, and they know to keep a lookout." And she had contacts watching out for them. Not that they knew that.

"I know it'd be a hell of a coincidence, but is it somehow possible that this isn't connected to JJ?" Morgan thought out loud.

"Well we won't know until we start looking," Hotch answered. "Let's get to work."

* * *

><p>One day after Polly's disappearance, JJ had received a message about a potential trade to get her back. There were, however, no followups to that message, and JJ had turned into a nervous ball of energy.<p>

Four days worth of investigating and profiling finally led to Alexander Gleitman, a mastermind on the wrong side of the law who liked to masquerade as a legitimate businessman.

"Let me at him," she said as soon as they had him brought in.

"JJ, you can't," Hotch responded gently. "You're too emotionally involved."

"I don't care."

As JJ stormed past him, Morgan tried to grab hold of her, but she managed to avoid him and sped into the interrogation room.

"I assume you know who I am."

Gleitman looked up at her boredly then resumed staring ahead.

"Let's just cut to the chase. You're going to do the whole 'I'm just a businessman' routine, but I don't have time for that, so here's what I'll do."

JJ sat on the edge of the table, facing Gleitman.

"Want to know what I did with Reisberg? You know who he is, right? Tough guy, renowned enforcer, not a guy anyone in their right mind would mess with. At least that's who he was. Guess who he is now? My four year old son could beat the crap out of him. Poor guy's a quadriplegic." JJ brought her hand up to the base of Gleitman's neck and began to squeeze it. She could feel him tense under her fingers. "I severed his spinal cord right here."

"You see," JJ continued, circling around him. "I do whatever it takes to protect my family and the ones I love. Reisberg prided himself on his strength, and now he can barely blow out a candle. You pride yourself on your attention to detail. Know my remedy for you? I'll use you as my personal dartboard, and my bull's-eye will be your right eye."

She gave him a little tap on said spot, and Gleitman jerked his head away.

"With any luck, the dart I throw will penetrate right through the squishiness that is your eye and right into your brain. All I need is the right upward angle and the right amount of force, and hey, there's a hole in your parietal lobe. Well, your frontal lobe too, but that's beside the point. Know what happens to people with lesions in their right parietal lobe? They lose their attention to half the world, and they don't even know it. Can you imagine yourself like that? Looking into a mirror, only seeing half your face, and never realizing something is wrong."

"Is that true?" Prentiss asked from her position behind the two-way glass where the other profilers watched. "The stuff about the lesions?"

"It's a slight embellishment, but it's essentially true," Reid answered.

Gleitman glared daggers at JJ. If looks could kill...

The team watched her lean in closer.

"And let me tell you something: I don't miss. This is no longer about what you don't want me to gain, so much as what you don't want to lose. So tell me, where's Polly Homefeldt?"

"Do we think she's serious?" Morgan asked incredulously.

"About finding Polly? Oh yeah," Rossi replied flippantly.

"That's not what I meant."

"I know," the Italian man said patiently. "And what do you think?"

"No. There's no way," Reid responded. "JJ may be hardened, but she's not cruel."

"I think it's possible." The other profilers turned to stare at her, but Prentiss continued to stare into the interrogation room. "Remember 'Dorado Falls'? Innocent children were killed, and JJ's reaction was to shrug and say there've been worse missions."

"That doesn't mean she..." Morgan trailed off.

"I doubt we'll ever know for sure," Rossi remarked to the comfort of nobody.

Hotch meanwhile said nothing, listening to the conversations in both the interrogation and observation rooms.

As soon Gleitman spat out Polly's location, JJ shot out of the room, and Hotch said, "Morgan, I'd like you to talk to SWAT. Work up some sort of strategy for the warehouse. The rest of you get ready."

The team scattered to their respective tasks.

Exiting the observation room, Hotch's eyes immediately searched for JJ.

He grabbed her arm as he caught up to her and pulled her back. He directed her to an isolated corner.

"That was an interesting display."

She avoided his eyes and shrugged. "I did what I had to."

"I know you're worried, and I know you feel guilty, but all of this, JJ..." Hotch sighed. "That's a slippery slope you're treading on."

"I'm not on the slippery slope, Hotch." The blonde's voice was quiet and pained. She'd promised to be honest with him, so she continued, "I've already tumbled down it and fallen into a pit of quicksand at the bottom."

"JJ," Hotch placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Watery eyes looked up at him.

"Can we not talk about this? Please? I just... I can't right now."

* * *

><p>They arrived too late.<p>

Much too late.

Bursting through the doors, they quickly swept through the cold warehouse. It was deserted but showed signs of recent use.

They found nothing until Morgan and Reid reached a room - if it could be called that - freakishly similar to the one in Marcus Younger's home, and Morgan notified everyone over the comms.

"I'm sorry, JJ," Reid whispered as she approached.

Filled with dread, JJ entered the room.

Polly's body was sprawled across the floor. She'd obviously been dead for a while, though the cold had slowed decomposition. Dried pools of blood radiated from her wrists, and a bloody fork lay next to her side.

Taking in the scene, JJ could feel her mind shut down and her stomach wringing itself.

She fled from the room.

* * *

><p><em>Thanks for reading!<em>


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

A/N: The next time I try to write something this convoluted someone smack some sense into me (it's definitely fulfilling, but it takes waaaay too much brain power). For anyone wondering, I will see this fic through to the end come hell or high water. It's just slow going as I have to keep track of the twists and turns and whatever not, and I want to do it right.

Anyway, hope you enjoy the update.

* * *

><p>Hotch followed JJ to the alley behind the warehouse.<p>

He watched her fall back against a wall, slide down it, and hide her face between her knees. Hotch followed suit, gingerly sitting next to her but not saying anything.

"Going to remind me I can't save everyone?" JJ mumbled, voice resigned and broken.

"No," Hotch replied, his voice equally as quiet.

In fact, he hadn't planned to say much at all. There was a time for comforting words and a time for silent solidarity. Now was the time for the latter.

They sat together for a while, JJ's face never leaving the solace of her knees. There were no sobs, no shuddering shoulders, and Hotch thought for a second that JJ was taking Polly's death remarkably well.

That thought was quickly banished.

If there was one thing Hotch had learned about the young blonde beside him, it was her ability to mask her emotions.

And that scared him.

Because a JJ who felt comfortable enough to show her despair at young women being victimized or her distress from her family being in danger could be helped. A JJ who locked her emotions away, on the other hand, was a complete enigma. Hotch wouldn't even know where to start.

Would she give herself up? Would she go on a murderous rampage of revenge? Would she surprise him completely and do something no one would've ever thought of?

Frankly, none of those options sounded good. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, right?

Suddenly, JJ stood.

As Hotch did the same, their eyes met and JJ said simply, "Thanks for sitting with me."

Hotch tried to interpret the look in her eyes and thought it looked to be a contradictory mixture of steely determination and an emotionless void.

He'd have to keep an eye on her.

* * *

><p>The dart landed forcefully on the bullseye.<p>

Moving forward to collect the darts from the board, JJ sighed. As the days had gone by, the BAU and members of her other team had drifted back to their regular lives, leaving JJ alone to review the past week's events.

Darts was her stress relief. Having been shot in right shoulder, she was practicing with her left hand and was pleasantly surprised to find it wasn't as hopeless as she'd anticipated.

Two agents watched her from a corner of the hangar. They were there partially for her protection and partially to keep an eye on her.

JJ found them utterly useless and annoying.

"Hello, darling!" Garcia's voice rang out as she entered the hangar, and the profilers appeared one-by-one through the doorway behind her.

"What are you guys doing here?" JJ asked, approaching the new arrivals with a smile on her face. With no one to interact with other than Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum for the past few days, she relished the opportunity for good company.

"Well, it is a Friday night," Morgan said as Garcia pulled JJ into a hug. "Time to kick back and relax."

Realizing she still had darts in hand, JJ merely smiled and waved to the other BAU members who were setting up food and drinks - she'd hug them later - and made her way back to the dartboard.

Reid decided to accompany her. "You going to throw those?"

"There's no reason for me to show off," JJ smirked as she stabbed the darts into the board.

Reid chuckled at the response. Then his expression sobered, and he offered, "If you ever want to talk, I'm right here."

"I know you are, Spence," JJ responded, laying a hand on his arm with a grateful smile.

"Do you?" Reid countered abruptly. Something about her response seemed disingenuous, as though she were merely humoring him. Maybe his experience with the blonde after Emily's "death" had primed him with suspicion.

Taken aback, JJ took in his unusually stern face and answered, "Of course I do."

"Then talk to me."

"Spence," JJ tried to interject, but he would have none of it.

"No more secrets."

"I can't promise that."

"That's not good enough," the young genius snapped.

He knew he shouldn't be pestering her like that, but he was tired of finding things out when it was too late. He wasn't going to let that happen again. He was done with watching the people around him fall apart and disappear. He was tired of not being enough to keep them safe, to keep them close. His father had left him. Elle had ran. Gideon had left them. Even Emily did for a time as well. He'd be damned if he let JJ go down that path too.

"Damn it, Spence!" JJ ground out in frustration, though her frustration lay with the situation, not with him. She understood where he was coming from, but she just couldn't give him what he wanted. Things were never as simple as that. "There will always be something I'm not telling you. I can't change that."

"Yes, you can," Reid insisted.

Shaking her head, JJ decided it was time to walk away from the conversation. There was no point in talking their way around in circles.

* * *

><p>Morgan watched the blonde skillfully weave through the crowd. She moved quickly and purposefully, making it difficult for him to stay close enough to keep an eye on her.<p>

He sighed as she disappeared. _Damn it. Where'd she go?_ he thought to himself as he re-scanned the crowd.

"Tailing me, Morgan?"

Morgan jerked slightly and turned to meet the blonde eyes of his target. He shrugged unapologetically and answered, "Just want to make sure you're safe."

JJ eyed him skeptically. "You want to make sure I don't do anything stupid."

"Po-tae-to, po-tah-to," Morgan shrugged again.

"You know I already have a couple of idiots watching my every move, right?" JJ asked, gaze drifting over to said idiots' location.

Morgan flashed his most charming grin. "Well like you said, they're idiots, so... here I am."

Rolling her eyes, JJ felt the need to emphasize, "I'm not Emily, you know."

"Yeah, I do."

They stared at each other, Morgan suddenly much too serious for JJ's liking and JJ much too flippant for Morgan's.

Eventually JJ relented. "Fine. You can help me pick out a present for Henry. I want to send it to him for his birthday next month."

* * *

><p>JJ stared.<p>

In front of her stood a framed picture of Henry and herself. She thought fondly back to the day the picture had been taken.

They had gone out to the park after a rainy day. Restless from being stuck inside, Henry had been determined to get out and play soccer the moment the rain let up. The soggy fields led to slipping, sliding, and muddy everything, but the family of three had a blast, and Will was sure to snap a picture of his giggling and very muddy wife and son.

JJ and Will hadn't considered the mud to be a big problem until they arrived home and found Henry was as reluctant to take a bath as he had been insistent to play soccer, the result being a bathroom that was both very wet and very muddy.

Sitting in the hangar, JJ longed for another day in the mud with her son.

"Hi," Garcia's voice came from behind her.

"Hey," JJ murmured, not taking her eyes off the picture.

"I miss Henry. I can't imagine how you feel," Garcia said sympathetically.

JJ nodded absentmindedly, though truth be told sometimes even she didn't know how she felt. There was a lot of pain, anger, longing, and self-recrimination to be sure. Occasionally all of her emotions would overwhelm her, evoking a sort of drowning sensation followed by a terrifyingly apathetic numbness.

_If you stop caring, you're jaded. If you care too much, it'll ruin you._

She was starting to feel both jaded and ruined at the same time.

"It's for the best," JJ said aloud, though Garcia knew she wasn't the one JJ was trying to convince.

"Doesn't make it any easier."

"No, it doesn't."

Garcia wrapped her arms around the smaller woman and held her tight.

"Do you think he hates me?" JJ asked forlornly, picture in hand, thumb gently stroking Henry's face.

"Never," Garcia replied immediately. "There's no way he hates you. You're his mother and a damn good one at that."

"Do you hate me?" JJ asked, finally turning to meet the other woman's eyes. The two blondes hadn't had a proper conversation since JJ'd surprised Garcia outside the toy shop a few weeks ago - if that could be considered a proper conversation at all.

"Jayje... what even..." Garcia spluttered. "Look, was I mad at you? Maybe. But that was more worried turned into mad because how could you make me worry about you like that. I could never hate you."

"Thanks," JJ mumbled before thinking to herself, _I hope you still feel that way when everything goes to hell._

* * *

><p>"You're looking at it all wrong."<p>

The task force looked up at the balcony to see JJ leaning against the rail.

"If you think Krug looks good for this, you're very, very wrong," JJ continued. "He's more of a behind the scenes sort of guy. He'd never be so conspicuous about his actions. You should probably be looking into his competition. My guess is start with Julio Durán."

Major Schore, who was heading up the DHS side of the task force, and Hotch exchanged looks, and the latter said, "All right then. Let's get to it."

As the task force scattered, Rossi made his way up the stairs. "Do you have time to talk?"

JJ nodded and led him into the empty round table room.

Rossi examined her briefly before asking, "How goes the investigation into Polly and the people who exposed you?"

"Slow but steady."

In terms of who'd taken Polly, Gleitman had given her names to track down, which she'd done before handing off their locations to the appropriate authorities. JJ didn't trust herself to not give the men tortuous deaths if she were the one to get them.

As for the news source, that was proving to be much more difficult.

"That's good," Rossi responded with an awkward nod. "That's how the tortoise won the race."

JJ frowned at the odd reference, and even Rossi himself looked puzzled by his own words. He supposed his concern for the young woman was throwing him off his game. He decided the best way to get past the awkwardness was to move on. "I'm sure you've realized that your situation is rather different than Prentiss'."

"I haven't run off to get myself killed? Thank you for noticing," JJ said sarcastically with a roll of the eyes.

"I was referring more to your lack of an Ian Doyle figure." At that, JJ's expression sobered. "Let's say you find out who exposed you. You take them into custody, but then there's someone else out there who wants something from Pearl Crescent. And there'll be another person after that and then another."

"Yeah, I know," came JJ's quiet response.

The renowned profiler looked at her with concern. "What are you going to do?"

"I... am not sure," JJ answered with an ounce of honesty though she did have an inkling. "I'm just taking it one day at a time. Unless you have any suggestions?"

"Unfortunately no." Rossi seemed to deflate with his admission. "But I'll keep thinking, kid."

* * *

><p>"Henry," Will called out. "Be careful on the slide."<p>

He sighed as he watched Henry ignore him and prepare to slide down head first on his tummy.

"Is that your son?"

Will looked up to see a beautiful woman standing by the bench he sat upon.

"Yeah." He said nothing more than that, wary of revealing too much about himself and Henry to a total stranger.

"Mine's the one in the green jacket." She gestured at the open space next to him. "Mind if I sit?"

"Not at all."

"My name's Sandra," the woman introduced herself, holding out a hand.

Shaking it, Will gave her his alias. "Ben."

She smiled at him and said, "It's nice to see fathers spend time with their children."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world. Plus, I'm a single father so…"

"Divorced?" When Will nodded, she said, "I obviously don't know you very well, but it's hard to imagine a woman divorcing someone like you."

Will shrugged awkwardly. "Turns out she... uh... bats for the other team."

"Sorry?" Sandra stared at him until it dawned on her. "Oh! Sorry!"

"It's all right. I'm just happy she's happy. She has a girlfriend now. Someone named…" Will thought for a while before saying the first name that came to his head. "Emily."

Sandra didn't notice the odd pause. "I'm divorced too."

They made small talk until Henry straggled up to them, clearly exhausted from his playground shenanigans. Will said goodbye and took Henry "home."

After putting his son to bed, Will set about putting away all of Henry's toys when a voice appeared behind him. "I wouldn't blame you if you wanted her."

Will jumped in surprise. "JJ!"

Wringing her hands, JJ said, "I haven't been a very good wife. Look at this mess I've gotten you and our son into."

Shaking his head, Will grabbed his wife in an embrace. "I don't want another woman, JJ."

JJ pulled back slightly. "It actually might be better for you to -"

"JJ, stop," Will said firmly. He took her hands in his and looked her in the eye. "Just because you've always needed an out doesn't mean I ever wanted one. I love you, even with all the crazy crap you come with. I'm here to stay. Well, not here here, but you know what I mean. So drop it."

When it seemed JJ wouldn't, Will decided to divert her attention. "Your new girlfriend is Emily by the way."

JJ coughed and spluttered. She did a good imitation of a goldfish before managing a very weak, "What?"

Will smirked at her reaction. "I needed a name Henry would recognize just in case someone asked about it."

"Why couldn't I have had a boyfriend named Derek?"

Will eyed her suspiciously at the oddly specific, oddly quick response. "Do you want a boyfriend named Derek?"

"No!" JJ answered quickly. "But at least he's the right gender, and Henry does refer to him as Uncle Dewek."

"I didn't want to think of you being with another man," Will admitted.

Shaking her head, JJ playfully punched him in the shoulder. "Oh, but thinking of me being with a woman is fine?"

Will blushed. "How about I make it up to you? Can you stay the night?"

"Yeah," JJ smiled as they held hands. "After all, it is Henry's birthday tomorrow."

* * *

><p>"Can I ask you something?" Morgan asked as he and Prentiss entered the lobby elevator.<p>

Prentiss pushed the button for the sixth floor. "Shoot."

Morgan rubbed the back of his head and wondered if he was making something out of nothing. After all, it wasn't as though he'd seen much of the blonde lately. Then again, the last time he'd worried about JJ like this, it'd turned out to be with good reason. "Do you think JJ's been acting weird?"

"You mean more than usual?" Emily fidgeted and stopped herself from playing with her nails. "No. Has she?"

"It's more of a hunch than anything else. Are you okay?" Morgan asked, taking in her cryptic facial expression.

"Just worried."

"Right, well, I can't help but feel like she's hiding something."

"I'm sure she's hiding a lot," Prentiss said, her words providing no reassurance whatsoever. "But I wouldn't worry about it. It's JJ."

"That's why I'm worr-."

Morgan stopped abruptly, as the elevator doors opened to reveal the subject of their discussion.

"Hey, guys," JJ greeted before turning to Prentiss. "Em, can I talk to you?"

Glancing at Morgan, Prentiss gave him her most reassuring look before answering, "Sure."

"I'll go update Hotch." Morgan took off for the bullpen, leaving the two women alone.

Making their way to a vacant office, JJ asked, "How's it coming along with your contacts?"

"Pretty good. I'm almost done compiling what you need."

"That's great." Upon noticing Prentiss' less than enthusiastic reaction, JJ added, "If you don't want to help anymore, I'll understand."

Holding up a hand to stop her, Prentiss sighed, "I said I would, all right? Just... don't ask me to be happy about it."

* * *

><p><em>Thanks for reading!<em>

A/N: Yup, JJ's up to new secret shenanigans. *sighs* But at least this time she has Emily?


End file.
